Stolen Hearts: Untold Tales
by Tatanka4Life
Summary: Originally Stolen Hearts: A Valentine's Gift, but because I had a few new ideas I decided to change the title so I can put them all in one place. Come join the Stolen Hearts duo on the day of love in a pre-epilogue one-shot, as they share family moments in post-epilogue one-shots and any other moments I may think of before, during or after their tale of love.
1. Chapter 1

Stolen Hearts: Untold Tales

A Valentine's Gift

 **A/N:** _This is a pre-epilogue one-shot to my story Stolen Hearts. I won't say it is necessary to have read it to understand this or any after but there are certain comments and such that will make more sense for those who have. For those who have read Stolen Hearts, this is post Chapter 23 and pre-epilogue as I have already state but otherwise I don't have an exact timeline for when it happens. Just meant to be a fun/cute one-shot within that storyline universe. Anyways, happy reading._

* * *

Anastasia Shepard entered her apartment with her friends in tow and released a deep sigh of relief as soon as her sky blue eyes fell upon the familiar apartment. _Home away from home,_ she smiled to herself.

It had been a long time since they had all stepped foot in her apartment due to their mission. Repairing the galaxy had kept them out of the Sol System and on duty constantly. It was fair, they had spent a lot of time in the Sol System previously before the Relay had been repaired and the rest of the galaxy was in dire need of getting stitched up.

The Normandy was her true home so that helped a lot in not leaving her to wish to return here. Relaxing in the apartment was all well and good, it was nice and had a comforting aura, but it wasn't her ship. Her ship was one of the few places she felt the most at home in, and the company wasn't bad either.

Everything was in place almost exactly as she had left it when the Normandy had departed to start Priority: Galaxy Repairs. A few things were shifted here and there, probably for the convenience of Zaeed, Jacob or Wrex, but otherwise it was still the same.

She scanned the apartment neither seeing nor hearing any sign of her three friends who had stayed behind for their own reasons. _Hmm, must be out already_ , Shepard thought. _I'll go see how they're doing once I'm done here._

The commander pulled the hair tie out of her hair allowing her long red locks to cascade down her shoulders onto her N7 sweater. It was nice to finally free her hair of the tight restraint she had not taken the time to undo after her work-out prior to docking on the Citadel.

Working out was the only time she did tie it up and that was to keep it from getting in the way, otherwise she preferred the freedom of having her hair down. Call it one of her strange quirks but having her hair tied back felt like a constraint more than anything else.

"All right everyone," Shepard spoke up as they all spread out across the apartment. "We'll be on the Citadel for the rest of today and tomorrow morning. Rest, go to the club and get drunk, do whatever you want to relax. If you have anything you need to get done while we're here, be sure you do it before getting drunk."

She flicked her eyes to their resident Krogan, a smirk pulling onto her features. "Grunt, no setting fire to and hijacking a C-Sec skycar or climbing the Krogan statue in the Presidium," she teased the tank-bred Krogan.

"Yeah yeah," he pouted, dismissing her statement with a small wave.

Shepard smiled at him then continued to look to the rest of her friends and crew. They had been hard at work helping refugees on planets as of late in both physical labor and mental. _I wish I could give them more than a day, but they'll make the best of it._

Wreckage and debris were everywhere regardless of what planet they visited, which made clean-up somewhat taxing. But the scarred people and finding the dead took a toll on their mental capacity. Each death was a reminder of those they lost and how lucky they were to be alive still.

And there was never an end to the clean-up. With planet wide destruction that was not all that shocking, Reapers had been called Reapers for a reason after all.

Needless to say, down time had been scarce for the last few weeks.

Their saving grace consisted of three details. First off was a really good rotation schedule that gave every member time to rest. It prevented the group from burning themselves out or getting hurt due to fatigue.

Getting hurt or nearly killed in an attempt to help would not help anyone. If they were to aid as many people as they could, they needed to be at peak capacity. Rotating the crew to rest and get food in their system helped them to achieve that.

The second saving grace had to do with the ships making it back to the Sol System from all points on the galaxy. They weren't sending refugees back to the already strained system. Instead, abandoned or Alliance owned ships were returning to be repaired after becoming space worthy.

These newly repaired ships were then outfitted with ready and able crews who wished to join them in recovery efforts as new repair teams. This ensured the planets weren't just receiving help for a short time only to be suddenly abandoned.

With all the damage done, abandoning the wrecked planets after a few days or weeks of helping wasn't an option. The crews on the newly repaired ships brought more man power or supplies, helping to relieve the Normandy when the long hours began to tax the entire crew.

Finally their day of shore leave was the last saving grace. Although the crew was given breaks on the Normandy, they never truly got away from the work. Whether it was through reports or conversations, they were consistently head first in their mission.

What brought them out of it was all thanks to the repair teams needing to restock. It was a most needed break and allowed them to leave the stresses behind, albeit momentarily. There had been many long hours on the Normandy in the recent months and a break, even a short one, would revitalize the squad.

Whether that meant they would laze around all day or go out on the town was a decision left to them. As far as Shepard was concerned, they could earn themselves a huge hangover for tomorrow morning if they wanted to and she'd have no problem with it.

Whatever her crew needed to do to unwind from their hard days of work was fine, as long as it wasn't illegal.

All in all galaxy repairs were going well. It was a slow process of course even with all the hands they had spread out working together, but no one was complaining.

What did they have to complain about anyways?

They had survived the Reaper War and had the ability to make repairs, that was more than any cycle before them could say. For Shepard she was just happy to be alive and have the woman she loved by her side on the Normandy as they traveled.

As her friends began to migrate further into her apartment, the redhead searched for her lover, finding no sign of her. A frown creased her lips. _Where did she go?_

"Looking for someone?" The playful voice made Shepard smile as she felt arms wrap around her waist. She leaned back into the invisible body and rested her hands over the invisible ones holding her lovingly. _I should have known she would be sneaking around already._

"Just the woman I love. She's gorgeous, has a love for sappy romance stories, and a wonderful penchant for kleptomania. Honestly, she gets me all hot under the collar," Shepard jested back.

The cloak deactivated and revealed a smiling but hooded Kasumi Goto. "Honey tongue." The thief kissed her on the cheek and tightened her arms around her affectionately. Shepard closed her eyes as she rested into her hooded lover finding immense comfort and relaxation in her arms.

It was not as if it had been all that long ago since the last time they had held one another, they barely went a day without seeing one another. Yet no matter how many times they did share time together, it never dulled the effects on them.

Each kiss and embrace filled her with warmth as the feelings of her lover collided with her own, swelling her heart to epic proportions. The amount of love she felt for the woman should have led to her heart beating itself out of her chest by now, yet there was a very good reason why it hadn't.

It couldn't beat itself out of her chest because it was no longer there.

Her heart no longer belonged to her. Her thief had stolen it without either truly noticing it and now handled it with the utmost care. The thing beating in her chest was just a muscle keeping her alive.

In return for stealing her heart unknowingly, Kasumi allowed the N7 to take off the chains that had guarded her heart from any feelings remotely to those she shared with Keiji.

Shepard never blamed her for having the chains there in the first place. A broken heart was not easily healed, and it was possible for it to never be healed if the person whose heart was broken never let someone in again.

Losing her partner and lover had scarred the usually fun loving thief deeply. She remained Kasumi on the outside, but on the inside, especially after retrieving the graybox, her heart yearned to have Keiji back. Knowing it was impossible had led her to blocking off romantic feelings from building. She would have relationships for the physical aspect, but never true love again.

Or so they had both thought.

Love was a mysterious force and the only cure for a broken heart. Neither had expected their friendship to evolve as it had, they had both been content as best friends. Or, at least that's what Shepard had thought until the war.

Her feelings had grown past the love of a friend to wishing to be the thief's lover. Of course she had not told her. The moments when she could have told Kasumi had been passed up on the belief she had that she wouldn't live past the end of the war.

Upon waking up in the hospital after the war was over things had changed between them.

Giving an intimate relationship a try had been a delicate process for them both in different ways. For the redhead she had to stop herself from letting all of her feelings for the woman free.

She had already fallen hard for the thief prior to the final push and in her final moments of making a decision to end the war her final thoughts had been of the many dreams she had wished to share with her.

To suddenly wake up from what she had accepted as certain death and find Kasumi there willing to give her a shot had made her equally ecstatic and cautious. Not only had she lived despite believing she would not see the end of the war, but her thief was there _wanting_ to chance love again.

The N7 couldn't risk scaring her off by letting loose the entirety of her deep feelings for the hooded woman. Instead of taking a blunt object to the locks on the chains guarding her heart, the commander had taken her time slowly unlocking them until the chains finally fell off.

Kasumi on the other hand had a different delicate process of searching through her own emotions after finding out from Bailey first that Shepard loved her. The C-Sec Commander hadn't known Shepard had meant Kasumi when he had found her buried under rubble, but the thief had been the first of the crew in the Sol System to arrive after she was found.

It worked out quite well even if it hadn't been planned.

Add in the facts of the commander being out cold, barely clinging to life at the time of Bailey passing on the news mixed with the Normandy missing somewhere out of the Sol system and you had a very emotionally confused thief.

When she had woken up Shepard had tried to leave the conversation about her feelings for a later date. The commander had no intentions of overwhelming Kasumi by speaking of how much her care had grown for her, but that hadn't worked.

They couldn't just leave things unsaid, not after living through the war to end all wars. The redhead had promised herself in her death limbo to tell the thief how she felt. On the opposite spectrum, Kasumi needed to know how her friend at the time really felt. Hearing from Bailey that Shepard wanted an unidentified "her" to know she was in love with them was different than hearing it from the woman herself.

Much to her surprise and happiness her thief had been open to given them a chance to be more than friends.

The rest—after their initial particularly lame kiss that they both still laughed at—was history. It was a story from the recent past as they were living together in the wonderful present.

All of those memories played through her mind making the N7s smile broaden to a full blown grin. It hadn't been too long ago that all of that happened and some of the moments were heartrending, but the good memories were the best.

 _Moments worth remembering as Thane would say._

"You're not thinking anything… _naughty,_ are you?" her thief whispered in her ear. Shepard chuckled as she felt warmth creeping up onto her face. _I wasn't even thinking of anything like that and she makes me feel like I was imagining the feel of her bare skin under my palms or the feel of her lips pressing kisses down my body._

Her blush grew as her imagination took hold, bringing her down memory lane. She could remember in perfect clarity how those feelings felt and her skin began to tingle a little at the thought of it.

Next to go through her mind was the longing yet playful look Kasumi had given her as she kissed down her body last night. It was followed by the feel of her soft and perfect hands gliding across every inch of her body.

A shiver made its way down her spine and warmth began to build in her body. Wearing a sweater did not seem like such a good idea now that it was getting so hot in her apartment. Her thought pattern trailed to taking off the piece of clothing now forcing her to feel as if she was going to break into a sweat.

It was as that thought entered her mind that she imagined her lover's sweat covered body against her own as they shared a deep kiss. Having a vivid imagination did her no favors in this situation as the thoughts she was thinking were clear on her face for Kasumi to see.

The sound of her lover's soft yet gorgeous laugh made it to her ear before her lips pressed against her cheek again. "You are so cute when you blush and think naughty thoughts."

"I wasn't—" Kasumi stared at her with a knowing smirk, forcing Shepard to rephrase her initial statement. "I _hadn't_ been thinking anything like that until you said something," she argued while banishing her blush.

She had already lost the battle, but there was no sense in giving her lover a lead in victories too great to catch up to.

The thief let go of her and entwined one of her hands with Shepard's, tugging gently as she smiled. With little reluctance, the redhead started towards their shared room on the upper floor of the apartment at a steady pace with Kasumi at her side, "Oh? What were you thinking about then?"

"Us prior to you falling head over heels for me," the N7 teased.

Kasumi shook her head and squeezed her hand lovingly. "I'm pretty sure it was you who was head over heels before I was." A completely truth filled statement if there ever was one. Even though they were just joking around, Shepard saw no need in trying to deny the fact. It wouldn't stop her lover from making a quip anyways.

Her thief gave a small shrug. "Besides, you went for my weak spot. I can hardly be blamed for falling in love with you."

"Are we talking about your weak spot for abs or your love for sappy romances since the way I sprung everything on you was like one of your corny stories?"

"Yep." Her answer made Shepard chuckle.

There was a lot more to their relationship than her love for abs or her love for sappy stories, that didn't make their banter any less entertaining. "I was also thinking about that first kiss we shared in my hospital room."

"I was nervous!" Kasumi argued. "You had been teasing me mercilessly and it left my thoughts too clouded to coordinate. You can't blame me for that."

"I don't. I'm at fault for getting caught off guard."

"And teasing mercilessly," the thief added for her.

"And teasing you mercilessly," she agreed.

The redhead stole a small glance at her lover as they walked, smiling at her N7 tags hanging around the thief's neck. Her eyes left the tags and moved to her own left wrist where the tattoo of a red rose was peeking out from under her sleeve.

The rose was lying horizontally with the stem on the left leading to the rose petals on the right. Across the stem leading towards the flower were the cursive written words _I'm yours, forever_. On the top petal of the rose was the word _Kasumi_ and the bottom petal had _Goto._

She smiled blissfully and turned her head back to the stairs they were climbing, feeling her heart warm at their prideful showing of who they loved.

They had both said those words to each other along with many other confessions of love over the time period they were stuck on the Citadel and as they had moved across the galaxy repairing what they could. Never did the words feel empty when either of them spoke them; they were always filled with their love.

Yes their hearts still pumped in their chests physically but figuratively they were now held by the other.

No one had ever meant so much to Shepard as Kasumi did. Her squad and friends meant the world to her and would always hold a special place in her heart, but Kasumi was her galaxy.

All the way through the war, she was always in her thoughts making a quip to help her keep going when everything was going to hell. It was her love for the thief that had given her the strength to finish her mission and save the galaxy even when her body was failing her.

Now in a time of peace she was able to share her love for the endearing woman without the threat of impending death around the corner.

Kasumi was in a similar boat as Shepard. She had never expected to give her heart to anyone else after Keiji had been killed. The master thief didn't want to go down the hurting highway for a second time, yet love had found her again in the form of Shepard.

Instead of pushing her away, Kasumi had accepted chancing them as a couple with open arms and quip to back it up. Keiji would always be in her heart, but she couldn't keep living in the past after her eyes had opened at the last moment to see the commander waiting for her to unplug from the graybox.

Shepard had never measured their love in comparison to the thief's previous lover—she wasn't trying to be Keiji. All she wanted was to be a good lover to the person she loved most, to be able to live the dreams she had dreamt for them.

It was one of the reasons why she hadn't pursued their relationship before the final push in the war. Kasumi had been attached to the graybox, clearly still not done mourning her lost lover and the N7 had no intention of forcing her feelings upon her.

Holding them back had hurt worse than any physical wound she had felt, but she would endure. By keeping them to herself it assured her that if she were to die it wouldn't cut as deeply on her best friend.

Maybe in a different life that meant never falling in love with her, but so long as she survived then the redhead had no problem loving her from beyond the grave. Hell that's what she thought was going to happen to her. Yet here she was entering her shared bedroom with the woman she felt so strongly for.

She hadn't let her last chance at life and love go to waste.

Her lover shut the door behind them and took her hood off, revealing her face and long black hair in a ponytail. "Any plans, Ana?" she asked as she moved to the closet in search for a different set of clothes.

At the moment her thief was wearing her usual black and silver armor because " _It is really comfortable, and I like the way you stare at me when I wear it._ " As Shepard watched her saunter over to the closet, she couldn't help but smile.

Kasumi made that outfit look really good.

It was very form fitting and accentuated her lithe body in all the right ways. Of course for all the ogling she did, Kasumi did so much more when the redhead herself was in regular clothes, in armor or the few rare occasions she wore a dress.

The latter of the group didn't happen often, if at all for months, but when she did the hooded woman could not tear her eyes away from the sky blue eyed commander.

Usually it was Kasumi who got her in dresses in the first place. The first time had been when they robbed Hock and the second on their first date—and each time she had not let her eyes leave Shepard unless she had too. For one reason or another the thief really loved to see her dressed up in spite of how much the redhead hated wearing dresses.

"Plans?" Shepard considered the thought for a moment. There wasn't really much she wanted to do except check in on Jacob, Brynn and their new child as well as Zaeed and Wrex. Other than those plans all she wanted to do was relax around the apartment with Kasumi.

She shrugged and approached the woman from behind. "No, not really. I'm going to see if I can find Jacob, Zaeed and Wrex." Shepard wrapped her arms around Kasumi's waist as she searched through the commander's clothes for her own. "After that I'm up for doing anything with you."

" _Anything_?" There was a tease in her voice.

Shepard rolled her sky blue eyes, a smirk tugging onto her lips. "Within reason. I'm not going to jump into the Presidium Lake."

Kasumi turned her head for her to see her mock pout. "Aw, but Ghost said the water was really nice."

The commander rolled her eyes again at the joke, her smile growing as she did. The N7 Talon leader was lucky to have survived that day. Jumping out and off a balcony with Ambassador Osoba in tow to avoid a bomb meant to assassinate the Ambassador had nearly cost him his life.

Something the mysterious leader was well aware of.

"No taking a dip in the Presidium Lake."

"Oh fine. Spoilsport." The master thief continued pouting leading to the sky blue eyed commander to lean into her neck and nibbled tenderly on the flesh, earning a surprised yelp. She placed a kiss on the area she had bitten then continued to place kisses up her neck to her jawline.

"How can I make it up to you?" The redhead moved back down her neck and across her shoulder. At this point all progress in searching for clothes had been halted as Kasumi pressed her body further into Shepard's.

"You're doing a fine job right now."

Shepard smiled into her shoulder where she had just placed the latest kiss and began gliding her hands up her armored lover's abdomen. Her fingers were stretched out, running over ever curve to her body with familiarity.

Even though her armor was thicker than regular clothing, Kasumi was able to feel everything, the commander knew this for several reasons but the most important of the reasons was watching and listening to her lover react.

In the listening category was Kasumi's breathing. Her breathing had been steady before but now was losing its steadiness, hitching momentarily when Shepard cupped her breasts. From then on she was fighting to control her breathing, sometimes letting out shaky breaths due to the hands continuing to touch her armored cover body.

As she listened she also watched her lover reacting. Kasumi had leaned her body further into the N7's, closing a distance between them that did not exist all the while shutting her eyes at the same time. She bit her bottom lip as Shepard's hands returned to her breasts and her lips glided up her neck placing kisses at different points.

"Ana—"

Kasumi sucked in a sharp breath, stopping whatever she was about to say. The redhead smiled in victory, knowing she was melting in her hands. It was nice not to be the one melting for once after being teased mercilessly by Kasumi the previous night.

Call it a sort of satisfying revenge they shared with one another depending on who was the latest tease.

"Yes?" Shepard prompted.

"I know you're just teasing me but—" She let out a sound of pleasured delight as the commander nibbled down on neck again.

"But?"

"You are wonderfully cruel," Kasumi told her. "But can we wait until a little bit later."

Shepard nodded and allowed her hands to move back to neutral ground. "Of course. Is there something you need to do?"

"Yeah, but I shouldn't be long."

They parted from one another, the N7 of the pair moving back a little to give the master thief room to search through the closet. Eventually she found her clothes and moved to the bed where she set the clothes down before starting to undress.

As she got changed Shepard took a quick trip to the bathroom, brushing her hair after she was finished. As she exited she found Kasumi already redressed in her hooded purple tank top and black pants with her armor put back neatly in the closet. "What do you have to do?"

She was curious. Kasumi had not made any mentions of plans on their journey back to the Citadel. All she had been looking forward to was having some uninterrupted down time as well as teasing Jack and Miranda about going out for a romantic dinner.

Why the thief thought the two were going to go for a romantic dinner while on the Citadel today was beyond her. It's not that Jack and Miranda weren't allowed to go on romantic dates; the couple could do whatever the liked so long as they were happy.

But why was her lover convinced they would do something extra romantic today?

Had she missed out on a good joke?

In response to her question, Kasumi walked up to her with a teasing smirk tugging onto those lips Shepard wanted to capture in an eternal lip lock. Once they were nearly chest to chest, her thief leaned forward to press her soft lips against her own, engaging her in a slow and tender kiss.

The kiss did not last long but it left Anastasia content without any thoughts clouding her mind save for the wish to kiss her again. Much to her disappointment, Kasumi turned so her hip was facing her before giving her lower half a gentle bump with a wink. "It's a surprise."

Her lover began to move towards the exit with Shepard not far behind, "Can I get a hint?"

"No." Kasumi stopped at the door with the sky blue eyed commander, "That would ruin the whole point of it being a surprise." She pulled her hood up, concealing the top half of her face before wrapping her arms around the neck of the redhead. "But I'll be waiting for you, so don't stay out too long."

Well that was something to go off of at least. She was going out to do something related to a surprise she was going to give her. What said surprise would be was hard to guess at. _The last big surprise she gave me involved hiding the Normandy's arrival until I walked into my apartment with all of them in it._

Shepard gave a small sigh of defeat knowing she'd never be able to guess what it would be. "Okay." She smiled at her thief. "I'll try not to let Zaeed talk me into a surplus amount of Claw."

They shared one last kiss and went their separate ways for the time being. First stop was Wrex who was busy with politics but was happy for a reprieve in the form of a visiting old friend.

Despite taking on the ambassadorial position for the Krogan, he was still the same old Wrex. With the combined efforts of all the races they were able to get messages through to Tuchanka and from what he had to say Bakara and her sister Krogan's were keeping all the males in line.

It was good news as far as Shepard was concerned. With those two working together, she was certain they would guide and renew the Krogan people, stopping them from falling back into the ways of their previous bloodshed.

Her old friend had to get back to it after catching up on his recent goings so the N7 left him to his work and made her way to find Jacob.

The former Cerberus operative was in Huerta Memorial Hospital with Brynn who had just given birth within the last week to their first child. Her friend had managed to talk Brynn out of naming the baby after Shepard to both of their relief.

There were enough people out in the galaxy who were thinking of naming their babies after her and to be honest she could do without that honor. Having a bunch of kids running around with the name Anastasia or Shepard wasn't something she was aiming for when trying to save the galaxy.

Jacob was very happy to be a father, though. He looked at his child with joy and at Brynn with a heart filled with love. They would be good parents, and he'd sure as hell be a better father than his own.

After departing from Huerta, Shepard met Zaeed at the bar inside the Silver Coast Casino as the veteran mercenary was telling a story about one of his past adventures to the Asari bartender. Normally the redhead was sure the bartender would have excused his stories as tall-tales, but when one took into consideration his scarred face and dead eye it was hard to doubt the man.

Zaeed didn't have to exaggerate any of his stories; they were all crazy enough as they were. Definitely the one about getting choked out by a Hanar, which happened to be the one he told the Asari about.

Looking back to the incident she had with Javik on the Blasto movie set, Shepard couldn't help but ponder if arguing with the jellyfish was wise.

Could he have choked the life out of her?

Would she have had to wear a neck brace to cover it up as well?

Explaining how you got that injury would nine times out of ten get people to laugh at you—not with Zaeed. You took his tale as a precaution for the next time you got in an argument with a Hanar.

It's why Shepard had reacted faster on her exchange against the indoctrinated Hanar while helping Jondum Bau and Kasumi.

 _Had he never told me that story, I don't think I would have taken him so seriously._

After the old mercenary finished his story and another drink the two took a walk as they caught each other up on the goings on the Citadel and out in the rest of the galaxy respectively. Besides the obvious repairs and working together, not much had changed since her last time on the Citadel.

In the words of Zaeed, _"Same bullshit, different day 'round here. Without the Reapers cocking everything up and Aria keeping the mercenary groups in line, there isn't much to do. I haven't had a good brawl in a while. Kind of sad really."_

To make it up to the mercenary, and without much coaxing for that matter, she brought Zaeed to the Claw machine in Castle Arcade to play a few games game where they continued to speak—and where he yelled at the game.

Admittedly he had gotten a lot better at it, he still missed now and then but he was certainly better than the last time they played. He also hadn't bankrupted himself so that was another positive.

 _I wonder if they have a hotline for Claw game addictions._ It was doubtful but they had won a few kids plushy toys due to the mercenary's hogging of the game. All in all the addiction was serving a higher purpose in giving kids a plushy toy, so that was good…probably.

Shepard and Zaeed parted ways a little while afterwards with the promise of seeing each other sometime tonight or tomorrow.

By the time she had stepped out of the arcade more than a few hours had passed between leaving her apartment and visiting her three friends. _Time to head back home,_ Shepard thought as she strolled back towards Tiberius Towers. _I hadn't meant to be out this long. I hope Kasumi hasn't been waiting too long._

As she walked at a casual pace something solid collided into her from behind, nearly knocking the commander over. "What the hel—"

"Thief!" a woman shouted.

Shepard had caught herself before landing a glorious faceplant but at the sound of the shout her head shot up in a firm stare. The human running away had a purse slung across his body and the feet colliding against the ground behind her told the soldier someone else was chasing this person.

Now knowing someone else was going to chase this wannabe thief down gave her a choice in whether or not she was going to follow him as well. She did have Kasumi waiting for her back home and this person was a fast runner from what she could hear.

Still, the redhead couldn't just let this person get away if there was a chance only she could catch him. Without hesitation Shepard sprung up and began sprinting after the would-be thief. Whoever he was didn't matter, but he certainly was not a real thief. She knew a real one and had fallen in love with her.

This was just a sad attempt at being a thief.

"Stop!" Her voice echoed across the street. He showed no intention of stopping and was attempting to lose her in a crowd near the noodle shop she had found Grunt at with C-Sec. _If these people weren't in the way I could grab him with my biotic's._

Unfortunately that wasn't possible. There was too high of a probability in hitting an innocent bystander and that was something Anastasia had no intention of doing. In an open area without a crowd she would have caught him easily, yet this was not an open area.

 _It's never that easy._

The streets were packed with people creating obstacles that really weren't needed right now. As the wannabe thief got through a crowd of people and began sprinting again right past the noodle shop with the commander hot on his tail something unexpected happened.

A flash of movement came out of the noodle shop nearly too fast for her to see. The blur got in front of the would-be thief and suddenly he was spinning backwards through the air before hitting the floor with a hard crack chest and face first.

"Someone call C-Sec and get this trash out of here," the person ordered after he took the purse off the unconscious man.

Shepard smirked as she came to a stop behind the man. "You were always one for making dramatic entrances. Nice clothesline, Ghost."

The N7 Talon leader turned around, his purple eyes piercing through his hood with utter surprise in them. "Shepard? I didn't expect you to be on the Citadel." He shook his head. "Shit, if I knew he was stealing your purse I would have hit him harder than that."

Considering the man spun through the air and was unconscious Shepard doubted he needed to hit him harder.

"Love, do you ever remember Shepard carrying a purse?" Tara's voice entered the fray as she exited the noodle shop wearing a smile. The purple eyed leader brought his free hand to his chin thinking over her question. _Probably be simpler to tell him no._

While it would have been simpler, it was a bit more entertaining to see him thinking so deeply on the matter. It also allowed for the two females to speak to one another. The dark blue Asari with red markings met her eyes with a warm smile. "Greetings, Shepard. I'm glad to see you are well."

Shepard nodded in greeting to her. She was wearing a casual green shirt and black pants complimented by her N7 tags hanging around her neck. Ghost on the other hand was wearing a black hooded tank top and dark blue jeans with his N7 tags around his neck. "Glad to see you two as well. How are the rest of the guys?"

"They are getting some R&R while they can, although your arrival also explains why Whitney disappeared suddenly. I suppose Samantha Traynor did as well."

The sky blue eyed commander nodded in agreement. _I guess Sam must have messaged Whitney and went to find her when she found out she was in fact on the Citadel._

"If you didn't carry a purse then…" Ghost finally rejoined their conversation after solving the puzzle of whether or not Shepard carried a purse. Having his initial dilemma solved led him to the next one as he looked to the object in his hand with suspicion. "Who does this belong to? It's not a bomb, right?"

"No, you don't need to take another swim," Shepard joked.

He let out an exasperated sigh at her as his lover muffled her laughs behind her hand. "It was _one_ time. You guys have to let that go." The footsteps chasing after the would-be thief became slower causing Shepard to look over her shoulder to the owner. A Turian in a suit was the one approaching them appearing quite relieved as he panted heavily, "This yours, sir?"

"My wife's." The Turian nodded so the N7 Talon leader handed the purse to him. He quickly sifted through it assuring all the contents were still within and the wannabe thief didn't stuff anything in his pockets. The Turian let out a sigh of relief before closing it and bowing his head in thanks to them. "I can't thank either of you enough."

"No thanks needed," Ghost answered. "We were just doing what any good citizen would do. Plus a clothesline." The Turian thanked them again then left back in the direction he had come running from. "Never a dull moment, eh Shepard?"

"I don't ask for trouble."

"Heh, I've said the same thing." He chuckled. Shepard didn't doubt that with how much trouble she had seen him get into in the short time they had known each other. Still, he and his crew of former mercenaries turned war heroes and first ever cross-species N7s were as efficient and deadly as her own crew.

Any trouble thrown at them didn't really stand a chance.

"You on shore leave too?" the man of the trio asked.

"For today and the morning tomorrow. After that it's back into the field."

Both N7 Talons nodded in understanding. "We were lucky enough to get two full days. Tomorrow we head out too," Tara said. Shepard gave a nod, there was probably a reason they had two full days instead of one. Re-staffing the repair teams or debriefing on something important were the most likely of the possibilities. "How are your guys?"

"Good, tired and glad for a short break. But good. I was just heading back to spend time with Kasumi. She said she had a surprise for me."

Ghost gave her his signature smirk as Tara smiled at her in a knowing way, although she wasn't sure what it was for. Sure the pair could assume they were going to spend time intimately, but there seemed to be more to there reactions. "Well well, I think that means she's going to tie you down to the bed and have her way with you."

Shepard immediately flushed red in embarrassment as the purple eyed leader laughed hysterically, getting a few slugs from his lover who was shaking her head and laughing as well.

 _I had almost forgotten what being in his company was like._ She shook her head and rubbed the back of her neck trying to banish the blush caused by the sarcastic N7. "I'm sure her Valentine's Day gift will be lovely," Tara said. "We won't hold you up any longer."

Shepard raised an eyebrow in question. "Valentine's Day gift?"

To her question, Ghost facepalmed. "Oh boy. You didn't know today was Valentine's Day, did you?"

"Today's Valentine's Day?"

He shook his head and smirked at her. "Well in that case you should head back and go find out for yourself." Ghost intertwined his fingers with Tara's. "It was nice seeing you, Shepard. We'll let you get back home to Kasumi. She's probably waiting for you."

With a short nod, Shepard let the two leave as she too headed back towards home with confusion clouding her mind. She had never been one to celebrate Valentine's Day; she hadn't ever had someone to celebrate it with if she were honest.

For that very reason she never paid any mind to the holiday. Not that she ever had the time for it anyways after Mindoir and becoming a solider in the Alliance. There was always something more important to do and none of her relationships were anything but physical prior to Kasumi.

On another note, she didn't believe you should shower the person you loved with love only once a year. She believed in showering them with love everyday which was why she made sure Kasumi knew how much she meant to her every second she could ever since they had started their relationship.

After her lover had been put in the hospital by the men who had bombed the refugee camp and tried to kill the Ambassador it had spurred her to do it even more than she had been.

Shepard entered the elevator and pressed the button that would bring her to her apartment as the memories of her bruised and unconscious lover filled her mind. It was still a painful memory now and continued to fuel the N7 to ensure not only that she protected her lover, but that she always lived in the moment with her.

Surviving the war had taught them both to make the best of every day they were alive and together because tomorrow was never certain. If either were ever to die early then they were going to die knowing they had made the very best of every second they were together.

The doors to the elevator opened, allowing Shepard to exit and head into her apartment. The commander had never been one to celebrate Valentine's Day, but she felt bad that Kasumi was possibly preparing some gift for her while she had done nothing.

 _I'll have to make it up to her if that is what she is up to._ Some part of her mind was still hanging onto the hope that Ghost and Tara were wrong about her lover preparing a Valentine's Day gift. Granted deep down she knew it was doubtful they were wrong, not even she could deny how well the idea fit together with her lover's previous actions.

Heaving a heavy sigh of disappointment in her oblivious mindset did little to ease her mind as she climbed the stairs leading up towards her room. It wasn't that Shepard minded having to make it up to her or anything, it was the fact she had let the day come without realizing it and did nothing for Kasumi—the person she loved more than life itself.

Her doors opened revealing the lights to her room already dimmed with their two scented Ginger Peach candles already burning. As soon as she was in the room, the doors shut behind her, locking for the night. Two arms glided across her sides, locking around her stomach as a head rested on her shoulder. "Happy Valentine's Day, Ana," her lover whispered lovingly to her.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Kasumi," Shepard responded tenderly mixed with her own disappointment at herself. "Sorry for not realizing it was today. I wouldn't have known at all if I hadn't run into Ghost and Tara."

"Ah, so that's why you look so sad." Lips pressed against her cheek, "I've never celebrated it before either, but when I realized you didn't know I decided I'd make it a surprise and get you a really cute gift to replace that scary Husk head James and Steve broke while bowling. Besides, the only gift I want from you is what you give me every day." Their eyes met when Shepard turned her head to look at her and found a loving smile on her un-hooded lover's face. "Your love is gift enough for me."

The sky blue eyed commander smiled back at her, feeling warmth grow in her heart at the truthfulness in Kasumi's words. "As is yours."

All of her previous disappointment left Shepard at hearing her thief had purposely kept her in the dark for the sake of a surprise. _I guess that's why she was going to tease Jack and Miri about going on a romantic dinner._ The two detached from one another only to embrace each other again as their lips met.

The kiss was filled with passion as every ounce of their souls was poured into it. It was here in the embrace of her lover as they kissed that she felt all of her previous worries and downtrodden thoughts leave her in a figurative wind.

This was how she wished to spend every second of her life after she retired, in peace with the woman she loved dearly. No worries about any external issues, just Kasumi and her together sharing their love.

As the redhead made to pick up her thief to bring her to the bed she was stopped. "Wait, I want to give you my gift first." Kasumi detangled herself from Shepard reluctantly and made her way into the bathroom.

It was as she was walking away that she took note of her thief being barefoot as well as noticing a single red rose was lying on the closest nightstand a safe distance away from the candle. _I wonder if she stole something this time or if it is just for us._

Her lover exited the bathroom with a medium sized red gift bag covered in heart designs. "Uh-oh. What did you steal?" Shepard teased.

"I didn't steal it…not half of it anyways," Kasumi retorted lightly. Shepard smiled and met her at the bed. She set the gift bag down on the bed and motioned for her to reach in to get her gift. "After you, Ana."

Whatever the gift was didn't look particularly heavy and it couldn't be something really large. A new gun was definitely out of the options here, not that the commander was looking for one anyways. Anastasia reached in without looking finding…something made of soft fabric.

The way Kasumi grinned at her had made her believe it might be a dress at first, but after feeling around it was definitely not a piece of clothing. It felt more like…The redhead pulled it out and couldn't stop the grin coming to her face. "Surprise!" her lover cheered.

In her hands was a medium sized brown teddy bear holding a cloth red heart with the white words _You Stole My Heart_ sewed into it.

Honestly, it was really cute.

She loved the simplicity and adorable idea of the gift. _Invictus will also be happy not to have something scream at him every time he comes out of his hidey hole._

"He's so cute, don't you think?" Kasumi asked as she smiled from ear to ear.

"He is," Shepard agreed but then turned to the gift giver with a tender smile. "But not as adorable as you."

"Aw, you say the nicest things." Her lover blushed. She guided Shepard's hands to stuff the teddy bear back into the bag, "But that's only half of your gift. Can you put that back in the bathroom please while I get your other gift?"

Shepard stole a quick kiss. "Of course, my love." Placing the bear in the bag back in the bathroom hadn't taken long, and secretly she pulled it back out of the bag to look at him one last time. _She is too cute for her own good._ She smiled at the adorable gift then put him back in the bag.

As she exited the bathroom with a quip in mind, Shepard stopped short finding her words and breath taken from her in one fell swoop. Sitting at the edge of the bed with one leg crossed over the other and her body facing to the side slightly was Kasumi no longer wearing her purple tank top or pants.

Those had been discarded to the floor on the side of the bed while the thief now sat in a black silk looking chemise nightie. While the nightie itself wouldn't have been a big deal ordinarily—except maybe leaving Shepard to ask why she chose to wear that instead of just a bra and underwear—this time was a bit different.

This chemise had sheer lacy cups with thin criss-cross straps, a low back that revealed from the middle of her spine up but was covered mostly by her free black hair. To top this all off—or bottom it off in location—the hemline to it barely reached her mid-thigh.

The sheer was dense enough to keep her velvet peaks hidden and it seemed Kasumi was also wearing underwear.

It was equally elegant as it was sexy.

Even though Shepard had seen her naked body before, her lack of showing off everything in this situation was arousing. Seeing the way it accentuated her curvaceous body, how her chest rose and fell evenly with controlled breaths, the way the candle light bounced off her bare skin.

She was breathtaking.

Ana's eyes trailed across her body going down her lovely legs and back up them to her covered yet beautiful torso gliding along the lines they formed. Her eyes stopped at Kasumi's perfectly shaped breasts, briefly taking in their splendor and wishing not to be standing at this distance so she could touch them.

Her eyes continued on though finding their way to the thief's usual purple lip paint that she had always found enticing. The paint led her to her soft luscious lips, the lips she wanted to capture so badly but couldn't because her body wasn't cooperating. Finally her eyes made it back to Kasumi's wondrous eyes, eyes that were filled with equal love and lust right now.

Kasumi was drop dead gorgeous anyways, but this?

This turned her into a goddess.

Kasumi gave her a shy yet sly smirk. "I didn't see much point in buying something that was going to end up on the floor anyways, so I stole it."

It was sound logic for the thief. The outfit was enticing, but it was going to end up on the floor as soon as the redhead could get her body to move again. Having trouble coordinating her thoughts at the sight of the beautiful woman who she was privileged to call her lover led Shepard to saying the first thing to come to mind.

"You're a goddess, Kasumi Goto."

Her thief blushed visibly in the candle light, averting her eyes for a moment, "You and that honey tongue of yours." She cleared her throat in an attempt to regain her previous boldness. "Care to join me, my dear commander."

With a small glance at herself Shepard realized just how overdressed she was for the occasion. A sweater, a tank top under the sweater, jeans, socks and shoes was what she was wearing as her lover was looking so beautiful in the chemise.

That needed to be remedied.

Once her body came back into her own power again, the redhead unzipped her sweater and made her way to the thief tossing the item to the floor as soon as she was free of it. Shepard nearly tackled her lover back onto the bed when she reached her and leaned down to kiss her.

Their lips met in an explosion of passion with the thief wrapping her arms around the back the commander's neck, smiling gleefully into the kiss. Shepard lifted her thief up who promptly wrapped her legs around her waist allowing her to move them further onto the bed.

Her shoes were next to be kicked off without either woman breaking off the feverish kiss they were engaging one another in. After they were discarded the sky blue eyed commander laid her lover down onto her back, going down with her so they were lying chest to chest.

They both broke off the kiss for much needed air only for the redhead to start kissing down her lover's neck and the bare part of her chest. Her skin was warm under her lips and the scent of her thief and the candles filled her senses. The fabric under her hands was silky soft as she ran them up the sides of the woman under her to the sheer lace cups holding her breasts.

She cupped them both and showered them with kisses before circling the covered buds with her tongue. Shepard could not contain her smile at the hum of approval from Kasumi, washing away her previous disappointment at not getting to capture the pink nubs hidden under the chemise without a barrier just yet.

Before continuing further down or removing the garment between them, Kasumi's hand found its way to her cheek caressing it in a silent question for her to return to her lips. Shepard obliged meeting her warm velvet lips once more but this time in a slower kiss.

She had to slow herself down. This was not a race to the finish line, no this was something they both preferred to savor by taking their time to help make the night incredible.

The thief's expert hands worked their way down her back to the hem of her tank top then glided under it her bare hands running across the N7s back. A shiver ran down her spine at the simple contact plus their kiss. Those hands knew every inch of her body and could find every scar and muscle line with practiced ease.

There was no becoming immune to it, which wasn't a bad thing. One of the reasons why it was so hard to become immune to it was due to the fabric constantly between her and the thief.

Since the day they had met Kasumi had worn gloves at all times of the day all the way until shortly after Shepard was able to leave the hospital. Never had she been able to feel the skin of the redhead except in a kiss or if her cheek rested against her own once they became an item.

As weird as it may sound to someone who didn't wear gloves or a full suit of armor almost every second of the day, both women had looked forward to the moment they could feel the others skin. Not even in a full body contact way either. That was there certainly, but to just be able to feel her lover's hands touch her face or arm or hand without a barrier of armor between them was amazing.

Even after the thief had stopped wearing gloves all the time and began wearing her tank top hoodie the feel of her bare hands and skin was something Shepard savored. It was almost as amazing as seeing her thief remove her hood for the first time and every time after that.

The stunning beauty under the hood never ceased to make her heart pump just a little stronger than it already did thanks to her.

Her bra was unclasped under her tank top making her smile at the wordless victorious noise her lover made within the kiss. They disengaged their kiss and Shepard leaned back up onto her knees, pulling the bottom of her tank top up with her as Kasumi helped her push it up past her smaller no longer confined breasts.

At the moment Ana was pulling her tank top and bra off over her head she gasped then let out a short quiet moan in pleasured shock. All of her movements stopped momentarily at the feel of Kasumi capturing one of her nipples with her mouth as she teased the other with her expert fingers.

Tossing the clothes to the side had taken a lot longer than it should have, but her body had been under the control of the tantalizing touch and lips of one Kasumi Goto. Breaking that control to continue where she had left off gave the woman enough time to attend to both pink nubs equally, leaving them aching in need along with the rest of her body.

A familiar eager yearning began to fill Shepard that only ever revealed itself under the touch of her thief. She took control of it before it could get out of hand and kept her movements and breathing controlled.

She brought one of her hands under the chin of her lover, guiding it up so their eyes could meet once more just before their lips found each other again. Her sweet lips parted giving the redhead access as her hands glided up, down and across her bare upper body.

Eventually they parted again, albeit reluctantly but it was for a good cause. Taking jeans off could become a project in moments like these, thankfully with the duo working together it didn't take long at all.

After discarding her jeans to the floor Shepard helped Kasumi to take off the chemise. As great as it looked on her body, it now was just a barrier between the two of them.

A barrier both agreed needed to go.

It found its place on the floor with the rest of the discarded garments leaving both women in their black underwear and braless. The scent of their candles filled the room, the light from them bouncing across both of their bare bodies making her lover look even more alluring than she already did.

Shepard brought her hand to Kasumi's cheek caressing it before tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear. She cupped her cheek afterwards. "You are positively the most beautiful woman I know, my love."

Even in this dimmed light it was easy to tell the master thief was blushing a little at her statement of truth. No one matched her loving thief in beauty, neither in physical beauty or emotional.

Kasumi leaned further into Ana's hand, bringing her own to it to rub her thumb across the back it. She turned her head and pressed her warm lips against the palm of Shepard's hand before returning to her previous position. "I love you, Ana."

She smiled lovingly at her lover. "Aishiteru wa, Kasumi."

Kasumi closed her eyes and smiled a big smile. "Eien, I'm yours." She allowed herself to fall back down onto the bed, tugging gently on the hand she was holding to bring the sky blue eyed woman with her.

Ana followed and met her in another slow passionate kiss, letting every ounce of love she held for the woman underneath her seep into the kiss as Kasumi did the same.

Regardless of there being a holiday or not the two women always backed up their words with actions.

By the end of the night it had been a very satisfying Valentine's Day.

The Next Day

Kasumi exited the elevator of the Normandy and made her way into her Shep's cabin. They were heading back through the Relay to continue where they had left off in reconnecting the galaxy and helping refugees. That was fine by her, she enjoyed the work and with every step forward here they were both taking steps towards their dream for the future.

But that was still a long ways away. For now she was looking forward to reading one of her novels in the comfort of the redheaded beauty who was probably going to be going over reports as she did.

She entered the cabin and found her lover sitting at her desk on her terminal going through messages or reports. Kasumi was not sure which it was so she bent over, hugged the woman from behind and placed a kiss on her cheek. "Interesting stuff?" she teased.

"Nothing as good as your books, I assure you," Shepard replied with a soft laugh.

"So you _have_ been reading my books," she fired back. Her Shep chuckled again but continued to read whatever it was she was reading. Kasumi placed another kiss on her cheek, not wanting to disturb her any longer. "If you can bring this over to the bed, you should. It would be more comfortable. For you and me."

Shepard broke her eyes away from the terminal and looked up at her with a smile. "I will be over there soon, my love." Kasumi leaned in for a kiss, capturing the velvety flesh and all of its splendor for a moment washing away all her thoughts like the rain in London had many months ago.

"I'll be waiting," she said as they parted. With a final smile, her Shep returned to work in turn making Kasumi smile fondly at her. _She's still as much of a hard worker as she was back during the Suicide Mission._ Before departing completely, she stole one last glance at the desk adjacent to the one Shepard was sitting at holding more ships for her model collection.

The teddy bear she had gotten her for both a good laugh and because it was cute sat where the Husk head had previously been, giving the desk a friendlier aura. She read the sewed in words and couldn't help but grin before leaving to read a book on the bed.

 _You Stole My Heart._

Kasumi chuckled quietly to herself.

Little did the person who created the bear know that it would not only find a place on the Normandy, but it also would speak for both of them.

 _I love you, Ana._

 _Always._

* * *

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the Mass Effect series or any of its characters nor do I make any profit from the writing of this fanfiction, outside of personal enjoyment. The copyrights, series and everything Mass Effect belong to Bioware and EA. Thank you for reading and hope you enjoy the other one-shots._


	2. Chapter 2

A Bedtime Story

"Mama?" The quiet voice of Miyako made Kasumi raise her head from her book to meet the electric blue eyes of her youngest daughter. She was sitting up in her bed with alert eyes befitting of someone who had _way_ too much caffeine.

"What's the matter, my little shadow?"

"Do you think Mommy will be back soon?"

Kasumi gave her a smile as she closed her book. "Yep, I'm sure she will be back very soon."

 _I hope._

To be honest she had already figured that simple question was the reasoning all four of her daughters were fully awake. She had heard the four stirring in their beds seeking out the comfort of dreams while their hearts were weighed down by the discomfort of missing the last person of their familial sextet.

The master thief was not exempt from the discomfort either. Not only did she miss the woman she loved, but she hated seeing their kids restless in worry. Knowing they were restless made her feel the same way, causing her to worry about how they were doing—which was why she was camped out in their room in a chair with a blanket, a small lamp and her favorite book.

She had tried sleeping in her own bed, but it felt incredibly lonely without Anastasia in it with her. At the same time she was hoping her presence in their room might soothe them and allow them to get to sleep.

Obviously that endeavor was unsuccessful tonight.

"I miss her," her child said sadly. Her three sisters sat up either onto their elbows or completely up in their beds with their eyes staring solemnly into the darkness of nothingness.

Zenia and Denia, the Asari twins Ana and Kasumi had adopted a year after they retired, were the eldest of the quartet at the age of six. They had been born five years after the end of the Reaper war but had never known their biological father and mother.

They of course had realized early on the difference of species between them and their adopted parents, but the twins loved them both dearly as their real parents just as the parents loved them as their own children.

At the moment the two were deciding on leaving their beds to comfort their younger human sisters or to stay put and hope Kasumi could ease all of their worries.

In the same year they had adopted the twins, Shepard became pregnant with their first human child via a sperm donor. Xandria was now nearly five years old with shoulder length red hair, a few freckles on her cheeks—both traits she gained from her mother—and green eyes instead of the sky blue eyes of Ana.

She of the quartet was leaning on her elbows staring at the floor wearing almost the same look of sadness Ana would. It would have been absolutely adorable if it wasn't so heartrendingly painful.

Last of the children was Miyako, she was a little surprise Kasumi had cooked up for her Shep a year after the redhead had given birth to Xandria. The thief had been there with her lover through the process of giving birth to their mini-Shep and though she knew the process was extremely painful; to see their daughter born was a truly wonderful moment no words could describe.

They had discussed wanting another child because their family didn't feel complete yet, but Kasumi had decided to do go through the same process in secret to surprise her Shep.

 _I think that went even better than when I hid the fact the Normandy team had arrived after the war and brought her into our apartment with all of them in it. The pure shock turned happiness on Ana's face was a gift in of itself for me, although it was definitely beat by gaining our little family._

Holding the recently born Miyako in her arms was a day she would never forget much like it was for Xandria and adopting the twins. Now the nearly four year old was practically Kasumi's mirror image save for her electric blue eyes and lack of lip paint.

Kasumi smiled softly at the memories of the days her children came into her life only to let it fall when she looked into the nearly tear brimmed eyes of her little shadow.

"I know. I do too," the mother of four said, sighing softly.

She turned off her lamp and stood up to light the room to a dimmed state from the previous darkness.

Usually her children would already be on their way to a land of dreams allowing their parents to head to bed or stay up a little longer to be with one another, but the last three nights brought about a new ritual due to a sudden call that had come at such an inopportune time.

 _Ghost is usually the worst moment killer of all moment killers, but Garrus managed to take that title away from him for one night._ Kasumi sighed mentally at the memory.

The duo had put their kids to bed and went back to their bedroom to relax, but the N7 had other plans, perfectly pleasurable plans that would have been great…but they hadn't even got close to put into action thanks to Garrus. _I'm so threatening to paint his armor pink next time I see him._

Four nights ago her Shep had received a call from the Turian regarding an important political issue needing resolved. Kasumi wasn't sure what it was about since she hadn't asked, but she had seen how quick her lover's attitude turned from bantering with a friend to the seriousness of Commander Shepard.

 _Whatever it was about,_ Kasumi thought pensively, _it was without a doubt something they truly needed Ana for._ She hadn't left that night much to the thief's satisfaction as both a parent and a lover. Regardless of how important the situation was, Shepard was not going to force their kids to wake up in the morning with one of their parents missing.

" _You know they need you," Kasumi had argued despite not wanting her Shep to leave that night. She didn't want her Shep to be gone for an undetermined amount of time and possibly have all the weight of the galaxy placed back on her shoulders, but she couldn't be selfish and hog the woman away from those people…no matter how much she wanted to._

 _Her Ana would always be Commander Shepard, Savior of the Galaxy and master problem solver to those outside her inner circle. Her role as an unofficial ambassador of peace had allowed her to help from home during the seldom times they needed her, but this obviously was of some importance._

 _It was only sensible for her to go as soon as possible, maybe then she could get back even quicker. Their kids would understand that the situation was serious._

 _Shepard had stared at her with unwavering seriousness in response to her admittedly half-hearted argument. "I don't care."_

" _Ana—"_

 _Her scolding was easily silenced with a quick kiss on the lips that left her between wanting more and wishing to continue her debate. It left her in indecision which allowed her Shep to continue. "The day I retired was the day I stopped playing full-time problem solver. Those people may think they need me, but where I am truly needed is here, at home, with my beautiful four daughters and my gorgeous heart stealing thief."_

" _I'll help them when I can," the N7 shook her head, "but I am not leaving in the middle of the night without telling my daughters where I am going. That would be absolutely wrong of me to do to them, and you. All of you are my life. The only reason I still help is to ensure our daughters grow up with the peace our friends and many others fought and died for."_

 _Any remaining argument Kasumi had left disappeared at her lover's heartwarming words. She wrapped her arms around Shepard's neck and gave her a kiss on the lips. "I love you, Ana."_

The master thief sighed softly and let her eyes fall upon all of her kids. _I hope everything is okay. I don't want them to grow up in any kind of war like the one we went through either._ Anything even close to Reaper War level of destruction and pain was the last thing she wanted breaking out in her children's lifetime.

Anastasia had been true to her word, as always. She stayed with Kasumi that night and left the next morning after breakfast and explaining to their kids she was going to help solve some political issues on the Citadel.

 _She'll probably have to knock some sense into whoever is causing the issues if push comes to shove. I'll be a little upset if she does; she's sexy when she's shouting down politicians in the name of peace, even sexier when she's fighting in the Combat Arena._

Memories began to try to break loose in her mind about the redhead in her sleek armor, but Kasumi swiftly boxed them up and focused back on her children. This was only the second time Shepard wasn't allowed to use a QEC for her unofficial ambassadorial role, the first being only a few months into her retirement from active duty.

Due to how sparse the first and second time these instances happened, almost five full years, none of their daughters had ever gone more than a few hours without seeing both of their parents—not even Denia and Zenia.

This was the first time their little ones had been missing one parent for a collective of three days. Granted they did get to see her when her Shep vid-called the group the first and second nights so it was not as if she had been completely away from them.

Yet even a vid-call hadn't soothed the absence of her presence at home. Their little ones missed her being there to tuck them in at night with the thief; they missed her being around to play with them during the day and the normalcy of the couple practically being conjoined at the hip.

With her gone they were missing a part of their hearts, a feeling Kasumi felt as well.

Ever since retiring from the Alliance and as a Council Spectre, or really since the end of the war, the two lovers had rarely been apart—if ever. Being apart now and only seeing her through vid-call was hard, but seeing the kids try to deal with the absence of the redhead was far harder.

 _It makes my heart ache seeing them so sad._ Kasumi lowered her eyes. _I can only imagine how much pain you must be going through now, Ana._ She felt her heart begin to ache more at the thought of how badly her Shep was missing all of them. Unconsciously she brought her free hand up to the N7 tags around her neck and held them gently. _It's hard enough being away from you…but to not be able to be with our kids every day?_

Kasumi couldn't bear the thought of it. She hoped Shepard would be home soon for both the sake of their kids and her own sake.

Not wishing to spend too much time on gloomy thoughts, she sauntered over to Miyako's bed. Her new ritual the past few nights was to put the kids to bed after a vid-call from Shep and then stay in the room with them reading a book until she fell asleep in the chair, but her lover hadn't called or answered her call in return tonight.

 _Probably busy shouting down whoever is causing problems._ Kasumi smirked slightly. _Garrus is probably remembering old times right about now. I almost miss the crazy days of the Normandy missions._ She sat down next to her youngest daughter and planted a kiss on top of her head. _But I prefer this adventure of having four wonderful daughters and seeing the peace on Ana's face when she's home over any of the ones we had before._

Nothing quite stacked up to being in love with the riveting redhead and having their excellent kids, but that was probably biased.

Regardless of bias, Kasumi knew it was unlikely the kids would go to bed now with the absence of Ana eating away at them more than it was the previous nights. With a quick glance down at her book, a light bulb flashed on in her mind for the perfect plan to put their minds at ease.

"How about we all go together to my room that way we can sit in one bed and I'll read you four one my books for a bedtime story. How does that sound?"

"Mommy says your books are really sappy and they could corrupt us." Denia giggled softly at her twin's statement as their other two sisters tried to hide their smiles and laughs.

The thief mocked an affronted look at the notion of her books being _really_ sappy to the point of corruptibility. "They aren't that bad!" Her retort gained her full-blown giggles from all of her daughters. She could only smile at seeing their moods brighten a little as it filled her heart with joy.

 _You four are the cutest._

As the giggles died down, Miyako crawled out from under her sheets closer to Kasumi to cuddle against her. "Are you going to read us that book?" Miyako asked as she pointed at the book in her hand.

Kasumi smiled and wrapped her arm around her daughter. "I can if you four want. This one is actually my favorite of all the books I have."

 _I will have to pick a more appropriate area to read from than where I left off at. Reading the first and only explicitly described love scene between the Champion and her elven lover is not exactly a child friendly part of the story._

 _Definitely something capable of corrupting them._

"Your favorite of all of your books?" Miyako asked, her eyes wide in surprise as if she had just learned the secret of life. Considering Kasumi had a large bookshelf completely filled with real paper books, the shock shown by little Miyako was somewhat warranted.

"Yep! Would you like me to read it to you?" She received a very fast nod from the mirror image of herself. The thief smiled and picked her up then turned to the others. "Come on, little ones. It'll help you get to sleep. I promise."

The little redhead and two Asari nodded as they got out of their beds and followed close behind her to the room she usually shared with Ana.

Once there the mother of the group set up a pillow against the headboard then sat down cross legged with her youngest daughter in her lap. Zenia and Denia went on either side of her and cuddled close to her while Xandria sat in the lap of Zenia, who wrapped her arms around her waist, and cuddled as close as she could to Kasumi.

"Everyone situated?" the thief asked with a smile and a warm feeling in her heart at having all four of her daughters cuddling up against her. _I'm going to miss it when my little ones aren't so little anymore…unless I find some way to stop them from growing up._

That was a possible heist for another day.

She received a series of agreements before she began flipping through her book to find a more appropriate place to start their bedtime story at. _Usually I'd start at the beginning,_ she examined the thickness of the book, _but I doubt they'll be able to stay awake long enough for the story to pick up the pace if I do that. Then they'll think the books I read are boring and I can't have that._

Kasumi knew the book by heart which helped her to know exactly where scenes her young kids didn't need to hear about were. Granted there were not a lot, but one was still too much in her eyes for this situation.

 _I would never be able to live that down if Ana found out, or Jack, or Miranda, or Garrus, or Ghost..._ Kasumi shook her head mentally. _Yeah. I should make sure that doesn't happen. I don't want "reading my kids a love scene" to be the new "Shepard escaping through a fish tank" joke._

After flipping through the pages, eyeing the names of chapters and page numbers, Kasumi found a good starting point. "All right. Now before I start, I'll give you girls a little backstory on the characters we're reading about. It's a romance—"

"It's going to be sappy like you and Mommy, isn't it?" Xandria questioned teasingly.

"If by calling Mommy and I sappy you mean sharing an incredible love, then yes my little one." She gave Xandria a small poke to the forehead and a soft laugh as the redhead gave a small pout alongside her sisters giggles. "You'll all understand one day. Now." She cleared her throat. "This is a story between a character nicknamed the Champion and her elven lover. They…"

Kasumi went into a quick yet detailed description of what the story was about and where they were hopping into the tale before starting up.

She knew when her Shep found out about reading this story to their kids the lovely woman would tease her about corrupting them with her sappy romances, yet she didn't mind. It would be fun teasing, but what she would enjoy the most would be the captivated looks on their little ones faces as they were absorbed into the tale.

Hours Later

Anastasia Shepard entered her home with a sigh of relief as midnight struck. The lights were all dimmed, likely left that way by Kasumi in case she returned so she didn't have to stumble through the darkness.

The red-haired retired Commander had missed her home and family the entire time she was gone to the point it was almost physically painful. Her apartment was nice and had been a home away from the Normandy back when she was still on active duty, but it wasn't the beach house she and Kasumi had picked out nor did it have her lovable thief and four children within it.

Garrus wasn't bad company, but both of them would have preferred to be home with their significant other and children instead of dealing with politics.

Shepard unzipped her N7 hoodie and tied it around her waist, revealing her black tank top underneath as she casted her sky blue eyes across the entry to her house.

All was quiet to the point she could have been partly deaf and still heard a pin drop in a far room. _Not surprising since it is midnight. What would be surprising would be if Zenia, Denia, Xandria and Miyako were all up roaming the house at this hour._

Ana smiled fondly at the thought of her daughters and began moving towards their room, dropping her duffel bag onto the couch to deal with the contents within it in the morning as she passed it.

Being not only separated from Kasumi but also their four children had been what caused the stabbing pains in her heart to almost actually become physically debilitating. All of them were the galaxy core to her life, they were the air she breathed and the people she loved more than anything else.

To be called away to solve political problems for three days and only have the time for one vid-call each day felt worse than any wound she had been dealt, and she had been spaced and nearly incinerated by Harbingers beam on separate occasions.

It was only through those calls and having Garrus at her side that she was able to keep sane and not bash anyone's heads open for calling her away from her family. _Doesn't mean I didn't imagine myself smashing them around with my biotic's, that would have been somewhat therapeutic if it wouldn't get me in a bunch of trouble._

Those thoughts weren't any she wanted to go back to. She was back in the tranquility of her beach house and only a few steps away from her daughter's opened bedroom door. The N7 would be able to physically see them again, give their sleeping forms a kiss goodnight and cuddle with her lover tonight unlike the previous nights.

That was what mattered to her. Thoughts about anything else, especially the problems of the last three days, no longer held her heart in chains. Now she was free once again and could resume her peaceful retirement as if the last three days never happened.

She entered the doorway of her daughter's bedroom as stealthily as she could only to cock her eyebrow in confusion. _They're not in their beds?_ Out of old instinct she found her eyes immediately scanning the area for any signs of danger or struggle but found none, much to her relieved satisfaction.

The redhead eyed the out of place chair from the living room and blanket near it, _looks like Kasumi has been sleeping in here with the girls, but where is she now?_ The blankets on all of the beds were thrown to the side as if they had gotten out of bed.

 _Hmm, must have gone to our bedroom._ It was the only other option, _unless she took them for a walk on the beach…but at this hour?_ Shepard shook her head, _no. Kasumi wouldn't want them to be up this late._

Silently, or as silent as the former Alliance marine could be, she moved through their house to hers and her thief's bedroom. Again the door was open allowing her to hear the quiet voice of her lover come from within the soundproof room.

"I'm sorry." _Sorry? What could she be sorry about?_ Ana slowed her footsteps and listened intently to her lover's voice. "I…I shouldn't have yelled." Kasumi sounded truly sorry and the fact that she may have yelled at their daughters utterly floored the redhead causing her to cease up in her motions.

 _What the—_

"'Don't be sorry. I deserved it,' said the Champion." _Said the Champi—_ Shepard forced her laugh down, suffocating it before it could escape her and ruin her stealth completely. _Kasumi Goto, you're reading your favorite romance novel to our kids and acting it out fully, aren't you?_ She didn't really need an answer because she knew it to be true and loved that fact completely.

 _Had she never explained the characters, plot and her love for the book back when she gave me that massage after the war…I still probably would have assumed she was reading them one of her books._ She had never read it despite being urged to, but the N7 found Kasumi's love for the book endearing.

Shepard leaned against their doorframe with a smile forming on her face at the scene she found. Kasumi was centered at the top of the bed, resting back against a pillow while wearing her purple tank top, the Commanders old N7 tags, and a pair of N7 shorts she "borrowed" from Shepard's wardrobe because, in her words, _"N7's get the best of everything. Best gear, best missions, and apparently the best casual clothes. I mean feel the fabric of these shorts and your sweater!" She touched the fabric with her ungloved hands. "So soft! I'd actually pay for these if I hadn't already stolen a few pairs from you."_

The memory nearly made Shepard start to laugh again but she managed to keep herself in check. _She's really one of a kind,_ the N7 thought lovingly as her eyes trailed over her lover.

The hood on her tank top was down allowing her long beautiful black hair to cascade across her shoulders. Her purple lip paint gleamed in the dim light along with the N7 tags she had worn proudly around her neck since they had become an item.

Ana could stare at her all day and admire her beauty, but her eyes continued down from her face, past her chest to an added cute factor to this scene worthy of a holo. In her lap, between awake and falling asleep, was little Miyako. Her electric blue eyes showed she was putting up a valiant fight to not fall asleep while the scene Kasumi was reading was going on.

Denia was on her left side cuddled against her with a smile on her face and Kasumi's free arm wrapped around her as she slept. Zenia was on her right holding onto Xandria as the pair rested against the thief, both passed out as well.

The scene before her was absolutely cavity creating sweet.

"'No. You didn't. I'm…I'm not like you. I'm a fool, I babble a lot, you've had to help save me over and over again from missions _I_ set up…and you…you're beautiful. You're charming and witty; you are the most compassionate person I have ever met...' The elf took a step away and lowered her eyes. 'Please…you have to stop saving me from myself. You shouldn't have to deal with a bumbling idiot like me. People adore you; I will only drag your good name through the muck.'"

"Those words hurt the elf the most to say for she loved the Champion with all of her heart. _In a different life…maybe I could make her happy,_ the elf thought remorsefully. Little did she realize the Champion felt just as strongly for her. To hear her talk about herself in a negative connotation made her frown and take a step forward. 'Don't talk about yourself like that. You aren't a bumbling idiot or a fool.'"

"'You try your hardest to help your people and, if we're being honest, the missions that go wrong are probably my fault with my track record of bad luck. Sure you can ramble on, but I find it to be a delightful part about you. If you didn't, then you wouldn't be you.' _The woman I love,_ she kept the thought to herself for now. The Champion had no idea how her next actions would be received, but the way the elf spoke gave her hope that maybe her feelings were reciprocated."

Kasumi turned the page and merely shot a sly, loving smile and a wink at the redhead before continuing, "'You…you have to push me away. You're the Champion of this city now. I'm a mage and an elf; it'll only cause people to misjudge you.' The elf was running out of arguments against the stubborn woman in front of her. She loved her stubbornness because it was a part of what made the Champion who she was, but this wasn't the time."

" _Why can't she see this is what is best for her?_ The elf bit her bottom lip and tried to take another step back. _I have to be the one to walk away. I…I have to do this, for her._ "

Miyako shook her head. "She can't. They love each other."

Ana smiled affectionately at her youngest daughter as Kasumi, who also wore a smile, gave her a kiss on the top of her head before continuing on again. "A hand wrapped around her wrist, stopping her from running away as she planned to do. 'I'm not pushing you away,' the voice of the Champion stated strongly."

"The elf knew she shouldn't face her otherwise she couldn't guarantee herself the ability to leave, but she still turned her head to meet the mesmerizing eyes of the woman. They were filled with urgency for her to realize the woman was not backing down in the slightest. 'I don't care what my title is in this city or that you are a mage and an elf. If people misjudge me, so be it, but they will never be able to know how amazing the woman in front of me is.'"

 _Definitely a book belonging to Kasumi,_ Shepard smirked to herself. _Sappy lines, check. Two people deeply in love but trying to fight it in futility, check. Definitely without a doubt going to fall in love main characters, check._

Although she teased her thief a lot about the books, Anastasia absolutely adored her love for sappy romance stories. There was just something about how immersed she became with them that made her love for the woman stretch even farther beyond the Milky Way's length than it already did.

"'Please. You can't feel like that about me,' the elf pleaded as she looked away. She was the lowest of the low on the totem pole here in the city, sure her friends never treated her that way and she didn't really care how anyone besides them looked at her, but she couldn't allow her status ruin the Champion's reputation."

"'Hey.' The Champion brought her hand to the elf's cheek and cupped it tenderly, turning her head so she could meet the leaf green eyes she could stare into for all eternity. She gave the woman she loved a teasing smile. 'It's a little too late for that information, because I do. You're a remarkable woman and one I care a lot about. Don't push yourself away.'"

"The elf felt her heart beating faster than it had ever beaten against her chest as she stared into the pale blue eyes of the Champion. Could…could the Champion really have feelings for someone like her?"

"The Champion's hand caressed her cheek then tucked a few strands of raven colored hair behind her ear. 'I…I just…' The elf was at a loss for words, she had come to the Champion's home with the intent to apologize for her earlier actions. Yet now they were nearly chest to chest, or mostly chest to chest. The human woman stood a few feet taller than she did so it would really be face to chest if they were a little bit closer…The elf's cheeks began to tint pink, _which really isn't a thought I needed to give myself right now._ "

"'It's okay.' The human gave her a reassuring smile, 'Really. It's all right.' The elf allowed herself to lean into the soft warm hand of the Champion and closed her eyes. She didn't know if this was a dream or not, but she found herself unconsciously closing the distance between them."

Kasumi met the N7's eyes with a look pleading for help. _Uh-oh, this story is about to take an adult turn._ She pushed herself off the wall and moved over to the bed with very well hidden haste. "Enjoying the story, little shadow?" Ana asked her youngest in a whisper.

"Mmhm. It's really good," replied the girl tiredly.

The two parents met eyes, causing Kasumi to wear a sheepish smile in response to Shepard's teasing one. _You've corrupted at least one our daughters to love your stories._

Her thief shrugged silently with her sheepish smile remaining in place.

 _Sorry?_

Ana pressed a kiss on her single awake daughter. "I'm happy you enjoyed it, but it's time for you to sleep."

"Will you be here in the morning, Mommy?"

"Yes I will. Let's get you all to bed."

"Okay."

The master thief set her book down off to the side on the bed and readjusted Miyako so she could carry her. "I'll get her and Denia," she said.

Shepard nodded and gently picked up Xandria and Zenia in her arms. The two girls stirred in her arms as she began the short walk through the dimmed silent halls of their home to their room.

"Mommy?" Xandria's quiet voice reached her ears as they walked.

Not wishing for her daughter to wake up to full alert, she pressed a gentle kiss onto her head. "Shh. Sleep, little rose," she whispered lovingly.

"We missed you."

Her eyes began to well with tears as a happy smile took over her face. "I missed you all too."

"Love you, Mommy."

"I love you more, little rose."

Ana eased her two children into their beds, tucking them in, giving them both kisses goodnight and whispers of love before moving to do the same for Denia and Miyako. Kasumi had already finished with Denia and was in the midst of tucking in their youngest, who was finally falling to the sleepiness filling her.

Moving to Denia first, the redhead gave her a kiss goodnight and bid her loving words as she lay in dreamland. As she stood back up to her full height, she made her way over to her thief who was giving Miyako a kiss goodnight. "Goodnight, little shadow. I love you."

"Love you, Mama."

Shepard ran her hand slowly up her lover's back and shared a smile with her and a quick peck before she left to make her rounds to Xandria and Zenia. At the same time, the N7 bent over and placed a gentle kiss on Miyako's temple. "Sweet dreams, Miyako. I love you."

"Love you too, Mommy."

With her bedtime ritual complete, something she had missed terribly, the redhead moved to the doorway where she waited for her thief to join her.

Kasumi stood up after saying goodnight to Xandria and sauntered over to Anastasia, taking her place at her side to look at their four sleeping children. Her thief's hand found hers and intertwined with it as she leaned her head on the redheads shoulder.

Both women were at peace here.

Seeing their daughters sleeping peacefully, standing with her lover watching over them, it had once been but a dream they had shared as a plan for the future now turned into a wonderful reality. This scene before her filled her with so much warmth and peace, it made all the struggles, pains and nightmares of the Reaper War wash right off of her.

 _I love you all._ Ana turned her head and placed her lips onto the top of her lover's head, "Let's get to sleep, my love," she whispered.

Her thief gave a small nod and the duo left the room quietly with Kasumi hugging onto her arm as they walked. "Any trouble we need to worry about?" she asked.

She was referring to the last three days and secretly asking if her retirement was coming to an end. Her lover had worried about the latter possibility ever since they had settled down in their beach house.

For the longest time Shepard's duty had been the Alliance and then stopping the Reapers. Anytime something was needed from her or someone needed help, she put her own wants or feelings on the matter on hold to fulfill her duty.

Even after retirement she still had a role as an unofficial ambassador peace, only usually it was either through QEC or calls on her omni-tool. She didn't actually have to make calls or use the QEC daily, weekly or even monthly. Most of the time she was enjoying her family.

Still, when she was needed via QEC or a business call, worry began to build within Kasumi. Of course her thief knew she would not break her promise made years ago to not allow the Council or the Alliance to place all the weight on her shoulders. She also knew Ana loved their children and her more than anything else in the world.

They were her beautiful family, her lifeblood, and they would never come second in her life. _As I told her before, the only reason I still help is to ensure our daughters don't have to live through a war like we went through. But if it came down to coming out of retirement or staying with my family, I would selfishly pick my family every day of the week._

Once she stumbled upon the Reaper threat, the redhead never stopped fighting or stopped taking on all the weight and the pain that came with it. For the entirety of the war she had to make hard choices that had heavy prices to pay…choices that left her with a lot of scars.

After the war was over, after she found love with Kasumi and after they settled down, the N7 had finally found peace. She had earned her rest from conflict in the words of her deceased friend Thane and to finally be at peace gave her a feeling that was indescribable.

Her lover knew how she felt, yet there was always a small part of her that worried Shepard would get unwillingly pulled away from her peace.

Thankfully that wasn't happening now and would never happen.

Ana gave her hand an affectionate squeeze and rubbed her thumb across the back of her hand. "Everything is fine, my love. I won't be leaving again anytime soon."

"Good. Wouldn't want the girls to see you on the news for biotically slamming a politician, I'm not sure how we'd explain that. 'Mommy just doesn't like politicians, my little ones. You see they caused her a lot of problems a long time ago and she never really forgave them,'" her thief quipped easily with her worry subsided.

Ana gave a light laugh as they entered their room. "I suppose that would be a bit of a problem, but don't worry. I was on my best behavior."

The thief detached herself and moved to the bed to grab her book. "No fighting?" Her voice took on a mock pout. "But I was hoping to hear about you taking down another wannabe politician planning to assassinate an Ambassador."

"No plots to assassinate Ambassadors this time." Ana gave her a smile. "I did promise to bring you along the next time something that interesting happened, remember."

She nodded as she grabbed her book and turned to face her. "I know you promised, but I missed out two separate times so far on a clone plot and an assassination plot." Kasumi shrugged as she tried to fight against a smile but failed to do so. "Can't blame me for worrying about it happening without my knowing again."

As her thief walked in her direction, but towards her bookshelf, Shepard motioned to the book in her hands with a smirk pulling onto her face. "Decided to corrupt our little ones, have you?" she teased.

Her lover slapped her stomach lightly with the book. "Oh hush. It was a great bedtime story, you should have seen how engaged they were with it," Kasumi retorted, prideful at her book being able to engage their kids.

She had seen Miyako engaged but agreeing so soon would only end the fun. _Can't let her get that easy of a victory._ No, having a mini-banter battle would be far more enjoyable than simply conceding to defeat, even if she would have to do so in the end.

Shepard crossed her arms over her chest as she watched her thief put the book back, waiting for her to turn around face her again to launch her next strike. "And the fact I had to interrupt it because of the upcoming love scene?" she reminded airily.

"That was…I didn't think Miyako would stay up that long!" her lover argued, a slight blush forming on her face in minor embarrassment at the situation that had nearly been upon her.

Ana went to continue their banter with another poke about her books but stopped herself short at the sight of her lover's tired eyes. _She's been up late every night so far I'd bet._ It wasn't a complete surprise, she doubted she would have been able to get to sleep right away if the roles were reversed, hell she hadn't slept great at all ever since leaving.

Not wishing to drag their banter on too long, the sky blue eyed woman closed the distance between them and gently grabbed her hands. "She's a real trooper," the N7 smirked, "and clearly inherited your love for sappy stories." Kasumi huffed playfully. "But finding you all together was quite the adorable sight, I must say. My only regret is I wasn't able to be with you all the whole time."

And it really was a regret she held. She knew they could easily duplicate the feat by telling a bedtime story in their room instead of in their daughters next time, but somehow this one felt special since it was her lover's book she had got the kids engaged in.

Kasumi gave the redhead a compassionate look. "It's not your fault, Ana." She gave her a comforting smile. "Besides, I can always read that book to you all another night." Suddenly her eyes began to light up at the thought as if she had just planned the perfect heist for Fort Knox. "Wait a minute. That idea is perfect! You would be able to sit with us _and_ you finally get to experience my favorite book!"

Granted she did regret missing out on being with her family for Kasumi's story, but it was still Kasumi's story they were talking about here, meaning ridiculously sappy.

Ana went to debate the point, having sat through _Fleet and Flotilla_ with Tali and _Vaenia_ with Kasumi—the latter of which had her lover mercilessly teasingly touching her through the entirety of the vid because of a bet she lost.

Those vids had been some of the cheesiest romance vids she had ever seen, to the point they were almost painful to watch. The only thing that stopped them from being so bad was seeing the enjoyment in the glowing eyes of her friend and Kasumi's touch making her lack any focus on the vid.

But Kasumi _loved_ those vids. Despite their corniness, despite any negative comment anyone in the galaxy could think of, those vids were not the least bit hard for her to watch. Her books were undoubtedly the same.

Yet even though she knew the book her lovable thief wanted to read to their kids and her was going to be possibly even cornier than those two vids put together, she couldn't argue. Instead the redhead found an affectionate smile forming on her face at how her lover was nearly bouncing on the balls of her feet at the idea.

 _I missed you._ Anastasia tugged on her hands gently to guide her towards the bed. "Come, _my_ _hero_ ," she purred. "Let's get some sleep. We'll talk about you reading your favorite book tomorrow."

Her thief beamed at the reminiscent _my hero_ tease. "Of course, my dear Commander. Anything for you," Kasumi retorted.

Ana laughed at her lover's own reminiscent tease then met her lovely warm velvet lips as they reached the bed. Their kiss was filled with passion and need, yet it remained slow as they savored every second of being able to kiss one another again.

They would eventually make it into bed and cuddle close through the night, but for now Anastasia was content here in the midst of a kiss with her lover with only one meaningful, yet superfluous in regards to the current situation, thought in the back of her mind.

 _It's great to be home._


	3. Chapter 3

Beautiful Eyes

"Why did they have to be green?" Xandria asked sadly to herself.

Anastasia furrowed her brow as she silently watched her red-haired five year old daughter stare into her bathroom mirror. Of course her daughter was completely unaware of her presence otherwise she was sure she wouldn't be staring at herself in the mirror with such a solemn look on her face.

Although the former N7 was not by any means as great at stealth as her lover, she wasn't a complete bull in a china shop. It was something she had worked on when they had started their family that way when she checked on them in the middle of the night she could do it without waking them up. With her daughter distracted it only made it that much easier to lean against the doorframe of the bathroom without being noticed.

The retired Commander was dressed in a dark blue bikini top covered by a black short-sleeve N7 V-neck and a pair of black shorts. Her long red hair was free and her feet bare with the feeling of soft carpet under them.

She had originally come here to see if Xandria was okay because she hadn't made it into the kitchen where the rest of their family awaited to go out to the beach. All four of her daughters had made a group vote a little while earlier to go for a walk on the beach which had led to the parents getting themselves and their children ready.

All had gone fairly well. They had gotten their daughters ready to go first then themselves without much of a fuss other than the adorable bouncing enthusiasm of their kids. Ana and Kasumi had both been happy to oblige their daughters in their wish and their enthusiasm made them laugh outwardly while their hearts beat within their chests in a warm blissful fashion.

Their kids _loved_ the beach. Whether they were playing tag, building sand castles or collecting shells, they always managed to have a good time. Their parents were always right there with them too, soaking in their enjoyment and playing along with them with smiles on their faces.

This evening, though, they were planning for a peaceful walk. Of course that didn't mean tag, shell collecting or sand castles were completely out of the question, in fact Ana was positive they would do more than walk the entirety of the time they were out on the beach.

Still, walking the beach was one of the adult's favorite activities because of their love of the atmosphere. There was something utterly soothing about the sound of the waves crashing onto shore, feeling the water brush over their feet and then recede away, the smell of the sea, and the feel of the dry or wet sand under their feet.

All of it filled the two women with peace. Having each other there whether they were holding hands or searching for shells with their daughters only served to make the beach one of their favorite places to be outside of their tranquil home.

Outside the sun was already starting its descent from its place high in the sky as evening began to close in. The temperature was not overly hot and humid yet not worthy of a sweater either even with the cool breeze out there.

It was perfect.

Besides the great weather enticing them to go out, this time of day had another reason as to why it was one of their favorite times to be out on the beach. There were only a few hours left until sunset, something the whole family adored watching.

Shepard could spend a few minutes listing off more reasons on the different aspects of the beach she loved, but her mind was preoccupied on one issue: the cause of her redheaded daughter's sadness.

Xandria had been one of the first ready but excused herself to go to the bathroom with the promise she would be out to join them shortly. Patiently the group waited until Ana decided that shortly was taking a worrying amount of time for her green eyed daughter who had been excited about the walk.

First she had simply went into the room just to see if she was still in the bathroom but that led her to finding the scene before her. She had only been standing here for about one whole minute, but that was long enough to decipher the heart of the issue.

 _Why isn't she happy with her eye color?_ Ana worriedly wondered. _She's never had an issue with them; in fact she's always loved her eye color. What caused the sudden change?_

Xandria stared glumly at her reflection with one hand balled up in a fist. Shepard knew the sign all too well. Although her daughters had never seen her visibly sorrowful or angry, her red-haired daughter had somehow managed to inherit her habit of closing a hand into a fist to fight off sadness with anger. Much like her mother she was a stubborn fighter yet also a very sensitive person at her core, especially since she was only five.

It pained the woman to see her daughter in such a state and Ana found she could no longer remain silent. She had already gotten enough information to figure out what the problem was; now it was time for her to step in and help her daughter.

"Xandria."

The smaller redhead froze up at the sound of her mother's voice calling her name. Her hand fell out of a fist as she looked over in the direction of the voice to meet the sky blue eyes of her mother. "Mommy…how long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough, little one." Ana pushed herself off the doorframe and strode forward to her child. An ache had built up in her heart at the sight of her daughter in pain, but she had fought against her maternal instincts to rush in and scoop her up in a hug so she figure out what exactly the issue was just in case Xandria tried to play it off like nothing was wrong.

The little redhead knew now that there was no skirting the issue. She let out a soft sigh as her mother took her place behind her and rested her hands on her shoulders, gently running them up and down them to her biceps in a soothing manor. "Can I get contacts, Mommy?" Xandria asked quietly.

"Are you having trouble seeing?" Ana asked curiously even though she knew the answer.

"No…I just…" Again the young girl sighed but this time turned her eyes down toward the counter. "My eyes are ugly."

Ana frowned as she knelt down and turned her daughter to face her. _What on earth made her feel this way?_ The retired redhead knew her other three children would not have intentionally hurt the feelings of their green eyed sister if they knew she was insecure about her eyes. They looked after one another and were sensitive to one another's feelings. Of course there were friendly sisterly banter and teasing battles, but their parents did the same thing and it was never done with any sort of malice.

So how did these feelings build up? It was a question Ana had every intention of figuring out.

Xandria was still unwilling to meet her eyes, as if by staring into Ana's eyes she would be judged heavily for her green eyes. The redheaded mother gently used her fingers to lift her daughters chin until her green orbs met her sky blue ones. She hummed softly as she pretended to be inspecting the girl before smiling and placing a kiss on Xandria's forehead. "I don't see anything ugly about them. I think they're beautiful actually, little rose."

"No they aren't. You're just saying that." Her little redhead turned her head away and stared back in the mirror. "They aren't pretty at all."

 _Definitely stubborn like me. This isn't going to be easy._ The issue could not be skirted, but what had caused it was certainly something she was going to have to get out of Xandria.

"Why do you think your eye color isn't pretty, Xandria? You've always loved your green eyes." She never went around gloating about how great her eye color was, but Xandria had said she liked the little forest green ring around her pupils and lighter green surrounding it. _But why doesn't she like them anymore?_

It was answer she was hoping her daughter wouldn't be too stubborn to give.

Xandria contemplated answering the question for a brief moment before deciding to answer in a soft voice. "I did…but you, Miyako, Denia and Zenia all have really pretty blue eyes…and I have green." Her daughter's solemn features took over her face again. "I heard Mama say you have the most beautiful eyes she's ever seen. Miyako, Denia, and Zenia have different shades of blue, but they still have blue like you…and I don't."

Tears began to brim in her redheaded daughter's eyes as her hand again unconsciously closed into a fist once more. _Oh, Xandria._ Ana brought her daughter closer and wrapped her up in a hug which Xandria reciprocated tightly as her silent crying began to take over.

There were quiet sniffles and silent sobs only detectable through the shakes of her body, but she did her best to hold every sound in. Again it was something she had inherited from her mother. Like Ana, Xandria wasn't one to suffer loudly. She barricaded her heart from everything and everyone, outside of family, with walls and walls of protection to be as strong as she could be, but behind those walls she was a sensitive soul.

What made this situation bad, besides the fact her daughter was crying and it was tearing apart Ana's heart and forcing her to fight against her own tears, was the hurt Xandria was experiencing had accidently come from Kasumi. The former N7 did not blame her lover and she knew her daughter knew the thief had not meant the comment to hurt her. It was all really an accident mixed with a misunderstanding.

The accident was that Kasumi's compliment to Ana about her eyes had inadvertently made their little rose believe her eyes were not as pretty thus making her believe she wasn't. _It would kill Kasumi to know she had accidently caused any of our daughter's pain or to feel the same as Xandria does right now._ For that reason Shepard had no intention of telling her thief the full truth about the delay.

There was no sense in making Kasumi feel heartbreakingly guilty over an accident and she was sure Xandria did not want to make her feel that way either.

The misunderstanding part of this came from her little rose. Kasumi's compliment had been said after they shared a passionate kiss two days ago as both a truthful statement and one to make the former Commander blush, which had been super effective.

Their daughter had heard the compliment and had unfortunately taken it to heart. She had undoubtedly been overthinking it since then leading her to her current conclusion: she did not have blue eyes thus making her not beautiful. It was a misunderstanding for her to think that Kasumi did not think her eyes were beautiful based on loving words she had said to Ana.

Just telling her it was a misunderstanding would not solve the problem completely, though. That was the equivalent of telling her to toughen up and get over it, and that was not going to happen. Acting so callously towards the people who were the oxygen she breathed and her reason to live was not how she operated as a person or a parent.

"You know, they told me the whole self-conscious stage was a teenage thing. I guess you're hitting that stage early, huh?" Ana jested lightly with a small chuckle.

Her effort received a choked out giggle from her little redhead. "Sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry for anything, little rose." The redheaded woman gave her a kiss on the side of her forehead before releasing Xandria and opening the cabinet next to her to grab a roll of toilet paper.

When she had it she began wiping away the tears on her daughters face and helping her to blow her nose. "Give me a Krogan sized blow." Xandria blew her nose softly. "Come on! What would your Uncle Wrex and Grunt say if they saw that?" Ana teased her daughter. Xandria giggled lightly before giving a louder and larger blow.

Once done, she moved the toilet paper roll off to the side and picked Xandria up, placing her on the countertop. Now it was a matter of cheering her daughter up and reassuring her that her eyes were perfect the way they were.

The retired Commander considered a military pep talk but immediately discarded the idea. That was a bit more intense than what she needed to do here and she knew Kasumi would give her a very hard time if Xandria started saluting them and marching around the house. _Although that would be kind of cute and funny._

She didn't entirely want her daughters to join any military force, but imagining her little redhead snapping to salute before going off to clean up her toys with her sisters was slightly entertaining to the retired Alliance Marine.

Pushing that thought aside, Ana pondered on a new plan and came up with a better one she was positive would work. "Just because you don't have blue eyes doesn't mean you aren't beautiful, Xandria," she started. "You think Mama is pretty, right?" Her daughter gave an affirmative nod. "Yet she doesn't have blue eyes and I still think she is far more beautiful than me."

"Yeah but she doesn't have green eyes either."

"True, but if she did it wouldn't change how beautiful I think she is. I'd love her just as much as I do now. Being born with blue eyes actually wasn't as great for me as you might think it is based on Mama's opinion of them."

Xandria cocked her red eyebrow up in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Shepard smiled softly as she looked beyond her daughter into the mirror. "You don't know it, but when I was your age I used to get made fun of because of my hair and eyes. Red hair and blue eyes isn't all that common, especially in the colony I grew up in. Out of everyone there, only my parents and I had those traits and because of that some of the kids my age then called me some very unkind names."

Truth was she had gone through a similar stage Xandria was going through now. Mindoir wasn't exactly a time she looked back on with fondness due to the pain caused by losing her family all those years ago, but she did have some scarce memories left over from that time.

One of the memories she could recall was being called names like " _tomato head!_ " or " _scary eyes!_ " and a few other _charming_ names kids her age came up with due to her red hair and sky blue eyes.

Thinking back on it made Anastasia remember the day she lost her parents and friends all in one fell swoop. Her heart immediately began to feel weighed down as her eyes became filled with the old sorrow.

What stopped it from taking over her being completely was locking eyes with her green eyed daughter. Staring into her dual green colored orbs brought her mind away from the heavy thoughts pertaining to the incident years ago and back to the task at hand.

"I wanted to change how I looked for a little while, but then I met someone else who thought I wasn't ugly."

"Mama?"

Shepard chuckled lightly as a fond smile tugged onto her face. "No, not Mama. I was still a kid back then and hadn't had the pleasure to meet Mama." _It was for the best,_ the redhead thought as she glanced to the side, _if she had been on Mindoir all those years ago…I wouldn't have ever been able to be here with her and our kids._

"But she thought you were pretty?"

The question pointed at her from Xandria washed those thoughts away like a leaf traveling over a waterfall. "Yes. She made me realize having blue eyes and red hair wasn't as bad as others made me think it was." She twirled one of her red locks around her finger. "These locks and eyes were a part of what made me who I am, just like your green eyes make you who you are." Xandria still looked uncertain to what her mother was telling her so Anastasia smiled at her. "Mama, your sisters and I love everything about you, Xandria. I bet if you told them you were changing your eye color they would beg or tell you not to."

"Really?" Her little one seemed surprised by the statement. Was her eye color that important to the others was a question Ana knew she was asking herself.

Shepard nodded. "Yeah. Mama especially." The redheaded mother smiled warmheartedly. "Why do you think she calls you her little rose normally and her Mini-Shep or Mini-Ana when she's teasing you for acting like me?" Her little redhead shrugged slightly although her mood was definitely starting to lighten up. "For starters it's because she thinks you're the most adorable little five year old we have."

The retired N7 tickled her daughter's bare feet making her yelp then giggle as she pulled her foot away. Her giggle in turn made Ana smile and tickle her other foot. " _Mommy_!" her daughter scolded as she laughed.

Ana laughed with her daughter before continuing where she left off. "Secondly, it's because roses are red with green stems." She gently brought a strand of her daughter's hair in front of her eyes. "And you have red hair with green eyes."

Xandria nodded with a smile. "And roses are really pretty."

"Right." Ana smiled at Xandria, "Thirdly, and most importantly, it's because she loves you dearly, little rose. She never meant for you to think you weren't beautiful just because you didn't have blue eyes. You also remind her of a miniature me." Ana's smile turned into a smirk as her plan finally reached its end with only victory in sight. "So by what you said earlier about her thinking _I_ have the most beautiful eyes, that means she obviously thinks you have beautiful eyes as well."

"You think so?"

"I know so, little rose." Xandria gave her a closed eyed smile in response making Ana smile lovingly in return. _Mission accomplished._ "Come on. We still have to go walk the beach."

"Wait." Anastasia raised an eyebrow in question as she stopped her movements to help her daughter down. "Can I ask you something, Mommy?"

"Of course." She nodded. _I guess we're not done yet._ That was fine; she would help her daughter to believe in herself no matter how long it took.

"Did you always love Mama?"

 _Not exactly what I was expecting._ The question caught the retired Commander off guard. It was now clear to her that Xandria had moved on past her eye color to this new question, but now she was left wondering where out of left field this question came from. "Do you mean like how we are now?" Xandria nodded. "No. I suppose I didn't."

"How come?" Her little redhead tilted her head in confusion.

"Well…" Shepard rubbed the back of her neck, _where do I even start with this question?_ "We met under abnormal circumstances for a mission back before the war had started. We were strangers and your mother wore a hood to conceal her face so I couldn't see how beautiful she was." _Though deep down I always knew she was beautiful._

"Aunty Miranda said you two were smity with each other from the start."

"You mean smitten, little one," Shepard corrected with a smile at her daughters cute mispronunciation.

"That's what I said," Xandria responded.

Ana chuckled and shook her head. _Next time I see Miranda's kids, I am so telling them Jack and her fell in love the moment they laid eyes on one another._ Inwardly the retired N7 smirked at her devious revenge plan. _Might get Kasumi in on it. She could spin a really good sappy story about those two._

When it came to the game of bantering and teasing, Shepard and Kasumi were the masters. They wouldn't say anything that would make the biotic duos kids think poorly of their parents; again this was all in good fun with no malice in mind. Only a fun bit of revenge to give Miranda and Jack a hard time.

 _The call or message I receive will be totally worth it._

"Well, Aunty Miranda isn't always right despite what she might tell you. Your mother and I did become best friends, but we weren't smitten with one another from the start. This wasn't one of her sappy stories where two people see each other than fall in love no matter what she says." Her daughter giggled at her jest. "After that though…we parted ways for a little while and then only saw one another sparsely until after the war was over."

 _And the rest is history,_ Ana thought. Every moment up to this point after the war were moments she cherished with all her being. To be able to have the chance to fall in love with Kasumi and have their wonderful kids, it was something she thanked the spirits of her fallen friends for every day.

"When did you start to fall in love with her?"

It was yet another question that caught her off guard for one simple reason. "…I'm honestly not sure," Shepard answered. So much had happened between the Suicide Mission and then the war that she could not directly pinpoint the exact moment her feelings for her thief had started to change. She knew she hadn't simply gone from wanting friendship to wanting love overnight, yet the retired Commander had no answer to her little redhead's question.

"I just remember one day when we were using the Combat Simulator that I felt the need to be closer. I can't tell you how long it had been there for or if I felt that way for longer than I realized."

Xandria furrowed her brow in question. "Why?"

Ana let out a sigh. "It was a different time for me, little rose. I never really stopped to take stock of my own feelings. My focus was the war and defeating the Reapers. I didn't really know I wanted to be more than a friend with her until the end…" _And I didn't think I was going to live to see the end of it._

"Oh, okay." Anastasia smiled softly at the simple understanding and helped her down so they could go regroup with the rest of their family and go for their walk. There were questions about if Xandria and Shepard were okay, but Ana was quick to affirm they were now.

Kasumi knew there was more to it but let it be and allowed the group to move forward for their walk. With Xandria falling back into her previous energy along with her sisters it was hard to tell them no. _Those four are just too cute for their own good._ Shepard couldn't help but be a bit distracted, though, as soon as they were all out of the house and on the beach.

Kasumi looked gorgeous as always. Her long black hair was free of its ponytail and her outfit, which consisted of a black bikini and purple semi-sheer sarong that was tied around her waist and fell a little below her knees, helped to accentuate her lithe body nicely…yet that wasn't what distracted her.

She was still aware of her surroundings and paid attention to her kids as they played tag and splashed around in the ankle deep water while she held hands with her lover. Ana was simply bothered by her inability to figure out when she felt differently about Kasumi.

The Combat Arena had been where she first realized her feelings had changed, leading her to get shot by a simulation, but everything after had been a bit sudden. To be honest she was surprised how willing Kasumi was to give her a chance. They had been best friends, but loving one another as friends and loving someone as a romantic partner were two very different levels.

Had her love been growing for a while or was it because of her fast paced life up to that point that caused her to fall in love so quickly? That question was only followed by another perplexing one. _When did Kasumi fall in love with me?_

Something warm and wet began trailing up the back of her earlobe, sending shivers across the retired N7's body before making her recoil and search for the source of the feeling. She quickly met the fully amused eyes of her thief as she tried to suppress her laughter, "I knew that would wake you up." Ana smirked and gave her lover a kiss on the lips only to nibble softly on her bottom lip for a small sort of revenge.

Kasumi smiled her beautiful smile, lighting up the retired N7's world and distracting her completely from her previous thoughts. "I love you," Ana said tenderly.

"I love you more," her lover replied just as tenderly. The words eased Shepard and she began to move to continue their walk but was immediately stopped by Kasumi's firm grip. She turned back to face her thief with a quirked eyebrow. "What's wrong, Ana? You spaced out there pretty badly. Is everything okay with, Xandria?" Kasumi questioned, her features set in worried seriousness.

The redhead nodded as she looked ahead to see all of her daughters taking a short break from tag to search for shells. Xandria was smiling fully as she and her sisters decided which shells were the prettiest to pick out. "Yeah, she's okay now. She just needed a little pep talk."

Kasumi's hand found its way to her cheek, cupping it tenderly as she turned her head to look her in the eyes again. Her beautiful life filled eyes were staring deep into Ana's filling her with waves and waves of relief that were granted sound by the waves rolling up the beach. "Ana, what's wrong?"

There was no sense dodging the question. It would only cause her thief more worry and though her worries had been washed away, the question was bound to come up again to pester her. "Do you know when you fell in love with me?"

Her thief stared at her for a moment before smiling affectionately at her. "Is that what's got you zoning out?"

"Yeah. Xandria asked and I really can't figure it out."

"We both know that's because you were so focused on saving the galaxy and didn't allow yourself to acknowledge your own feelings, whether of love or of any other kind." Anastasia nodded. She was right. The war had been her focus and she had to be the unbreakable Commander Shepard. Feeling helpless, feeling love or anything other than the comradery with her crew was completely out of the question.

She couldn't shed tears or spend too long mourning her friends who seemed to die one after another, sacrificing themselves for the brighter future they all lived in now. The moment in the Combat Arena and at the party were moments where she allowed her walls to fall down a little in turn letting her heart to finally tell her exactly how it felt for the thief.

"I think I did figure out when I started to fall for you," Kasumi continued. "Never knew it bothered you this much otherwise I would have told you sooner."

"It never really did, but Xandria's question got me thinking."

"Overthinking more like."

Ana smiled to herself. _I guess that's another thing we both share._ "True. So, when did you start falling head over heels for me?" she teased.

Kasumi smiled a sad smile causing the redhead quirk her eyebrow up as her smile fell. "The first time I found you crying." Shepard felt her eyebrow fall back down like a rock falling back down to solid ground. She knew that moment without her lover having to fully name it. She remembered the aches in her heart tearing her apart only to be soothed by a hug.

 _The Alpha Relay incident._ It was an event in her life that she tried her hardest to never think back on. Retiring, settling down with her lover in the beach house and having their kids had all led to her finally finding peace in her life, but the scars of the war still remained.

"Back when we were still in the Apartment before we started fixing the galaxy, I thought back to that moment and remembered being happy to be there for you as some form of support…but I also remembered this warm feeling growing in my chest," Kasumi explained.

She lifted their intertwined hand up and brought her other hand to it, holding it gently as she began rubbing both of her thumbs across the back of it, "I'm pretty sure I was yearning to hold you close like I did then. After that, I always felt a bit closer to you, but…" She looked back up at the Commander and smiled sheepishly. "Well I don't need to tell you about how dense I was to my feelings and your own before the end of the war."

"You made up for it," Ana dismissed her statement with a smile.

Her lover's sheepish smile turned into a teasing smirk. "I suppose I did with our first dance."

Ana gently pulled the woman she loved into a warm embrace and rested her forehead against Kasumi's with her eyes closed. For a brief moment they stood there listening to the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore and rolling over their bare feet putting the two lovers under a peaceful spell.

Then the spell was broken.

"Tag! You're it, Mama!" Denia giggled and took off back after her sisters who all cheered her on.

Kasumi smiled down at their little Asari before pulling Ana into a passionate kiss. The feel of her soft warm lips pressing against her made the redhead begin to lose herself back in the moment of peace they had been sharing. Suddenly the lips were gone, leaving the retired N7 a bit confused as her lover ran to catch up with their daughters. "You're it now, Ana!" she yelled over her shoulder with a laugh.

As the words rang in her mind Ana smiled but felt her brow furrowing in determination. _That little trickster._ Not only did she get a head start, but she distracted her with a kiss and left her wanting more.

This meant war.

"You are in so much trouble, Kasumi Goto!" she yelled back as she ran after the woman who threw her a mischievous smirk over her shoulder at her statement.

Regardless of when she fell in love with her thief, it didn't change the one simple fact Ana knew to be true in her heart.

She loved her troublemaking thief and daughters with all of her being, and that would never change.


	4. Chapter 4

Seeds of Love

 _What the hell did I do?_

Shepard braced herself against the wall next to her bed as she released a shaky breath. Her cabin on the Normandy was dead silent save for the sounds of the memories from her most recent mission swarming her mind. The voice of the Reaper Artifact and its pulsations echoing over the roar of gunfire played through her thoughts as her body trembled under the stress of held back her emotions.

Her emotions were pressing against the containment walls she had erected to keep herself from breaking. They were trying their hardest to break free and take in a breath of oxygen after being suffocated for so long. Alarms were going off in every sector trying to warn the woman of the impending collapse of the dam holding back an ocean of feelings.

The Commander could hear them loud and clear. She was trying to reroute power from non-critical systems, trying to reinforce walls and keep everything together…but nothing was working. All she could do was watch the countdown timer tick down to zero as her defenses fell apart at the seams.

It wasn't all too different from her last mission actually. She had been sent to infiltrate a Batarian prison in the Bahak System of the Viper Nebula alone at the request of Admiral Hackett. Her mission was to rescue an Alliance deep cover operative by the name of Dr. Amanda Kenson who, along with a group of soldiers, had been researching a Reaper artifact on an asteroid.

From the start she had not liked the sound of the mission; then again it was hard to like anything involving the Reapers. _Too bad it wasn't finding a weapon that could destroy the Reapers, at least that wouldn't be too bad._

It was a thought she would realize in the future that wasn't as true as she wanted it to be.

Yet this wasn't that time, not yet anyway. What she had to do was rescue Kenson who had crucial Intel about the Reapers. It didn't sound so bad until you added in the fact she had been captured by the Batarian's on terrorist charges and taken to a prison on the planet Aratoht, a planet run by a race who hated humans.

What made it a little worse was Hackett asking her to do the mission as quietly as possible, meaning she had to go in without any backup from her squad. The redhead had tried to argue her point of her team being professionals willing to help. With stealth masters like Thane and Kasumi, remaining silent wouldn't have been an issue.

 _It's best I went alone,_ she thought as she clenched her eyes shut as her thoughts continued to betray her and replay the mission over and over again.

That was hindsight though, a vision that came in twenty/twenty every time. At the time of receiving the mission the Admiral had given her strict orders to either go in alone or don't go at all. Although she was currently using Cerberus to help fight the Collectors, her loyalties still remained with the Alliance. Hackett trusted her to do the mission the right way, so she went alone.

She did not want to leave an Alliance solider in a Batarian prison anyways as it was an infrastructure she had only ever heard horror stories about in the Alliance.

The description of a escaped Alliance soldier was to imagine the most hellish thing you could think of, add in a nuclear winter, some thresher maws, suffocating in space, losing a limb and acid being dumped on you. After adding all of that in you were _nearly_ as bad as Batarian prison.

Zaeed had also helped to cement that statement further in one of their conversations. _"Ever been to a Batarian prison? They don't trust you enough to sell you into slavery, that's where they send you. In there you've got two choices, bash your head open on the wall, or kill everyone between you and the exit."_

" _That bad?"_

" _Death is a goddamned blessing if you can't escape."_

Shepard shuddered at the recent memories of the disgusting conditions of the Batarian prison. _They weren't wrong._ She could still hear the screams of some of the inmates she didn't rescue.

But Kenson had information on the Reapers, information Shepard needed to know which meant she had to push through the prison.

Now the N7 did not have the best history with Batarian's. She had survived Mindoir without being captured at the age of sixteen. Although she survived and was not captured by the Batarian slavers, she had lost her family and friends to them. For some time the event had followed her around like a dark cloud hanging over her head. Without Anderson she doubted she would have pushed forward.

Years later when she had become a Spectre she had run into Talitha, a fellow survivor of Mindoir but one who had been enslaved. Her condition mentally and emotionally had been a harsh reminder of the event, yet it had also proven to Shepard that she had gotten off far easier in the end compared to those who were captured.

She had healed for better or worse from the events of Mindoir prior to meeting Talitha; afterwards she had done her best to finally put it to rest. The Commander still missed her parents, still thought about them and wondered what they would think of what she was doing or who she had become. But what had helped her to move forward without falling back into the muck of misery after the meeting was having the Normandy and her crew.

Again she had gotten lucky by gaining a new family who helped to fill the holes left behind with comradery instead of lonely emptiness.

Her encounters with Batarian's hadn't improved over the years, though. Shepard had faced terrorists on Asteroid X57 who planned to drive the asteroid into a human colony during her hunt for Saren. Upon being revived she had started encountering them as Blue Sun mercenaries, none of which left a good impression on her.

None of these encounters left her with anything entirely positive to say about the race, yet she did not outright hate them either. For every bad event she ran into involving a Batarian, she had found one involving a human who was just as bad. Every Cerberus operation she had run into back during her hunt for Saren was a prime example.

 _The difference is I actually hate Cerberus,_ she thought in a temporary diversion from her melancholy. _Cerberus is an ideal, there are some good people mixed up in it, but what Cerberus stands for as a whole is bad. Batarian's are a people capable of being good or bad the same as everyone else._

Maybe she had a right to hate them for what they had done to her home many years ago. Maybe in some alternate reality she did despise Batarian's for killing the people she cared for. That wasn't this reality, though. She did not forgive or forget it, but she did her best to leave it in the past where it belonged.

With her diversion over, her thoughts trailed back to her mission. On her own she made her way through the Batarian prison without being detected by any of the guards until she had found the doctor. After shooting their way out and escaping by shuttle, they had made it to the project base on the asteroid.

The project had found out that the Reapers arrival was imminent and they would be arriving in the Bahak System. The Relay, or the Alpha Relay as Kenson had called it, would end up being used to invade any and every part of the galaxy. It was clear to the N7 that they had decided to destroy the Relay to delay the Reaper invasion, thus making the terrorist charges true.

 _I couldn't just let them destroy the Relay without seeing proof of the Reaper invasion being imminent. Blowing up the Relay would destroy the entire system and all the inhabitants within it. If it was true then we needed to get the Batarian's to start evacuating as soon as possible._

Shepard wasn't sure if the Batarian's would have actually evacuated or if they would have tried to destroy the asteroid. It was possible they would have believed the Reapers to be some sort of Alliance propaganda to take over the system.

There was no way to know, but at that time Shepard had no intention of killing everyone in the system, even if the Reapers arrival was imminent. Destroying an entire system without a thought for all the lives within it or seeing it as only a number would make them no different than the Reapers.

Upon arriving at the Project Base, the redhead was gifted with the sight of a countdown clock, the clock her internal destruction was currently using. According to the timer they had forty-eight hours until the Reapers arrived. _Not ominous or stress inducing at all,_ her sarcasm failed to ease the nerves running through her body.

It was around this time the mission had gone from going somewhat well to FUBAR, and that wasn't even because of the countdown. Apparently her warnings about Reaper tech and indoctrination went on deaf ears because the Alliance Operative and her fellow co-workers had left the artifact out in the open.

That wouldn't have been such a big deal if they had put shielding tech up or some sort of safety measure around it to prevent any chance of indoctrination. But they hadn't. They left it out in the open like a beverage they planned to come back to only for Shepard to come and find it crawling with ants.

She had found out too little too late that everyone in the station was indoctrinated. The artifact had shown her the vision of the Reapers arriving, bringing her to her knees as Kenson aimed a pistol at her.

Shepard had managed to break her wrist and send her crawling away, but practically everyone on the station started attacking her after that. Wave after wave of soldiers attempted to kill her along with an YMIR mech all the while the pulses of the artifact, Object Rho, continued to grow. She had managed to hold the soldiers at bay but in the end Object Rho knocked her unconscious with a pulse of energy.

When she awoke she was in a med-bay and she felt pretty much the same as she had when she woke up on the Lazarus Station, meaning stiff, fuzzy and ready to kick some ass. They had tried to drug her to keep her under until the Reapers arrived, but thanks to her cybernetics the sedatives had worn off a lot quicker.

 _At least that was a positive among the sea of negativity I found myself in._

Things started to blur together at that point. She had an hour and a half to escape the base and get the Project started. At almost every corner was the countdown timer allowing her to literally see time running out. Her mind and muscles had acted on instinct as she fought her way through dozens of guards to get to the Project Control Room. Once she was there everything slowed down and the reality of the situation had set in.

They were out of time and she had to make a choice: let the Reapers invade, leading to their cycle being destroyed or destroy the Relay and thus the system with it to delay them a little longer. Destroy a system containing exactly three hundred and four thousand, nine hundred and forty-two people, and yes that number was one hundred percent accurate, or let their unprepared cycle be wiped out? The needs of the large few or the needs of an entire galaxy?

No matter how it was phrased, the decision to be made was horrible.

Shepard gritted her teeth and clenched her right hand into a fist. Her nails began digging into her palm as she squeezed her already shut eyes further as if it would stop the memory from playing on her eyelids. The number of people who would perish had been put on the screen and it was still burned into her retinas. Every time she shut her eyes, she saw it and was forced to watch herself activate the project again.

 _I tried to warn them, I did._ Her fist grew tighter as she bit her lip to stave off the sick feeling in her stomach and overwhelming sadness bubbling up within her. _But Kenson cut off the damn transmission._

Anger flooded through the redhead at the reminder of the indoctrinated doctor stopping her from warning the Batarian's. She summoned up her biotic's into her right hand and slammed it forward into the wall causing a dull thud to reverberate through her silent room. For a moment she left her fist pinned against the wall as she considered whether or not to punch it again to release pent up frustration.

What stopped her was her lack of desire to break her hand. It would only fuel her frustration further and she didn't want a late night trip to the med-bay. Not now, not when her barriers were failing. She let her biotic's fade away along with her anger and uncurled her fist to let her palm rest against the wall again.

The rest of the mission had been fighting through guards to get to Kenson, shooting her in the head, escaping the base and sending a comm signal out to the Normandy. As she waited for her ship to reach her she had the opportunity to speak to the hologram of the Harbinger controlled Collector General, who merely added fuel to her desire to wipe them out.

The Normandy had shown up not long after, allowing her to get on board and for Joker to get them out of there just as the asteroid was about to collide with the Relay. She had watched silently from the Galaxy Map as the system had disappeared off the map quite literally.

A few days later, today to be exact, Hackett had come on board to debrief her. Shepard was allowed to explain what had happened, how things spiraled out of control and why she had to destroy the system. Obviously there would be backlash, the Batarian's would want blood for all the lives lost and they had enough information to implicate the Alliance for it.

Despite that Hackett had told her she had done the right thing and promised to buy her as much time as he could for her to finish off the Collectors. After she was done she would have to turn herself over to the Alliance, which was fine so long as they didn't stop trying to find a way to stop the Reapers.

Through the mission, through the days prior to the debriefing, through the debriefing itself and through the hours afterwards among her crew she had held it together. The N7 had shown remorse for what had happened, it was hard to hide, but she didn't allow herself to break. It was only now, here alone in her cabin late at night that she really let everything sink in.

 _Three hundred and four thousand, nine hundred and forty-two people snuffed out like they never even existed…all because of a choice I made._

She felt the weight of the number resting on her shoulders. Her legs felt wobbly under it to the point she wasn't sure she would be able to sustain holding herself up much longer. The grief she had hidden away was beginning to blast through the dam of protection she had built up and the warning alarms were blaring warning calls for the imminent disaster.

Shepard pushed herself off the wall and nearly collapsed onto her bed when her legs began to give out. She caught herself and sat down on the edge of her bed. Her body continued to tremble from held back emotion, her right hand was white knuckled. She was trying her hardest to reinforce every inch of the fortress surrounding her heart with sandbags to prevent the eventual tsunami from destroying it, even if in her heart she knew it was futile.

Rationality told Shepard that she had done what was necessary. Had she not done it they would have died anyway or would be turned against their own people or loved ones. By destroying the Relay she had prevented the Reapers from indoctrinating them or turning them into some sort of monster. Destroying it had also stopped the Reapers from arriving and wiping out the current cycle for the time being.

It was the ruthless calculus of war, three hundred thousand die so the rest of the galaxy can live to prepare for war.

Still, the Commander couldn't just rationalize it away or turn it into a statistic. The people she killed were real people with emotions and dreams that were just as authentic as her own. They didn't deserve to have their fates decided by her. The decision she was given shouldn't have been hers to make, it shouldn't have been a decision any person had to make.

 _How many of those people were kids?_ Shepard hunched over and laid her head into her hands. The thought destroyed the dam, releasing the tsunami of sorrow and all its fury right at her aching heart. Every inch of the fortress walls surrounding her heart began crumbling before the rushing water even reached them. Their foundation had been cracking from all the strain of the last few days.

This latest bit of weight was too much for her walls to support. Now her heart was left wide-open for the coming strike and all of the pain that would come with it. Shepard felt warm liquid escape her eyes and begin to travel down her cheeks as all of her walls came crashing down around her.

The unbreakable Commander Shepard had finally been pushed to her breaking point.

 _I'm so fucking sorry._

* * *

Kasumi was severely worried about Shepard. The Commander's mission to Aratoht had gone so horribly wrong, not that she blamed her for that. What had happened had not been her fault; it was because of those Alliance soldiers being indoctrinated that she was forced her to make a terrible decision.

She couldn't say it was the right decision, calling the death of three hundred thousand people the " _right decision_ " felt too cold. At the same time, though, she couldn't say the decision was wrong either because had the N7 not made it the Reapers would be all over the galaxy doing what they did best.

Perhaps it was neither a right decision nor a wrong one; perhaps it was just a decision that was as right as it was wrong. _It doesn't matter which it is. It's because of the Reapers that they're dead, not Shep._

The Bahak System was gone, the lives within it extinguished because of the Reapers. Those were facts the thief knew to be true in her sore heart. There was nothing she could have done to help them, but that didn't stop her from mourning quietly over the loss of life and wishing she could have helped somehow.

What had her worried about the woman who had become her best friend was that she was taking it all on herself. _She hides her feelings well, but I can see the pain in her eyes. She's holding it all in, trying to keep up a strong front for us to maintain good morale on the ship._

The mission had been a huge blow on their morale as a team. They hadn't failed a mission up to this point and for one to end as the last one did hit them all, even if they weren't on it. Despite that they still believed in Shepard wholeheartedly and were ready for the next mission, whatever it may be.

Kasumi continued to pace with worry as she thought about her friend. The redhead had become an active part of her life on the Normandy ever since she came on board. She had made a conscious effort to get to know her and had helped her regain Keiji's graybox without so much as a complaint.

 _Well…that isn't completely true._ The thief paused in her pacing as a smirk pulled onto her face. _There was the complaint about the heels and dress I had her wear. She wasn't too pleased to wear them, but she did walk in the heels like a pro and made that dress look even better than I thought it would look._

" _Never again, Kasumi,"_ Shepard had told her.

" _What? You don't want to do another heist with me?"_ She had puffed out her cheeks and crossed her arms in a pout. _"I thought we made quite the team."_

" _Heists are fine. I meant the dress and heels,"_ the N7 said sternly.

" _It wasn't_ _ **that**_ _bad,"_ she retorted but the firm look on Shep's face didn't change. _"You had people breaking necks in there, Shep. Everyone had their eyes on you, which means no one is noticing me. It was perfect!"_ Shepard rolled her eyes. _"Admit it. You enjoyed getting all dolled up."_

" _No."_

" _Come on. Not even a little bit? But you looked really good and I didn't even have to do anything to help with that."_

The response she had received was a blush and no other comment which in turn meant she had been victorious. To make Shepard speechless or without a witty remark was difficult yet Kasumi had found out making her blush was the best way to do it. _I got to see her blush, which is adorable, and I didn't have to promise to never make her wear a dress and heels again, it was a total win-win._

After she retrieved the graybox and Shepard hadn't forced her to get rid of it, she had spent a lot of time reliving her time with her dead lover. She missed Keiji and all the fun they used to have. He had become a part of her heart and was then ripped from her too soon. Having him back, even if it was just the graybox, had given her a small piece of him back…but eventually it started hurting more and more each time she went into the memories.

Reliving great moments and all the feelings with them was wonderful, up until she had to leave the graybox. She could lose herself in the memories and forget for a moment he was dead, yet every time she left it she was quickly reminded that he was gone and she was alone. Each time was like having to go through losing him again, and boy did it hurt.

It got to the point the thief began trying to separate herself from the graybox, but it was really difficult to have a piece of him so close by and not go to see him. Honestly it was only thanks to Shepard that she didn't spend every hour of her day in the memories anymore. Her visits and constant friendly attitude gave the thief someone to talk to and encouraged her to stay out of the graybox.

The pair had become practically inseparable when off mission. They shared in banter with the crew, gave Miranda a hard time to the point she threatened to sedate them; they were like partners in crime. If you saw the pair coming, troublemaking usually wasn't that far behind.

Because of how close they had become Shepard was allowed to come visit in her room whenever she wanted, Kasumi even gave her free reign over her bookshelf, although the redhead hadn't used it yet. _I'll get her to read one of them eventually. It'll prove once and for all that they aren't all sappy romance novels._

The thief decided to save the thought for another day.

The open door courtesy to Shepard had been extended to Kasumi by the woman as well, a courtesy she had made use of more than once. _I like my room, but there's just something about Shep's cabin that is soothing._ She liked to give Shep a break from work by visiting or bringing a book up there to read while she worked on reports.

What Kasumi was contemplating now was using that courtesy to go check on the N7. Shepard was her best friend and had been there for her when she needed someone to help her try to move forward, the least she could do was be there for her in her time of need.

The only problem was the thief didn't want risk seeming pushy or acting like she understood a fraction of what the woman was going through. She had no idea what it was like, she wasn't even sure if she had been in the same situation that she could actually handle such a decision. What could she even say that could help at this point?

Kasumi sighed, _but she shouldn't have to shoulder this one alone. I need to check on her and at least try to help. It's what Shep would do if one of us were in her shoes right now._

With her decision made, the thief stopped pacing a rut into her floor with worry and left her room with the elevator as her destination. The walk was short and she was able to press the button for the Commander's quarters before the thought of backing out could enter her mind.

When the elevator arrived and allowed her to disembark, she paused for a moment at the redhead's door to think of what she would say when she entered. Saying she was coming to visit would be an easy lie to spot due to how late it was. _If I want her to be honest, I need to be honest too. If she asks I'll tell her I was worried about her and wanted to make sure she was okay._ Kasumi took a breath to steel her rising nerves for whatever awaited her behind the door, _here we go._

She opened the door and made her way into the silent room. Immediately Kasumi could tell there was something off. The comforting aura that usually filled the room had apparently left out the airlock when no one was looking leaving behind a sorrow filled one in its place. Silence devoured every sound in the room to the point it was deafening.

The blue glow of the large fish tank within the left wall illuminated the floor serving as one of the only bright light in the dimmed room. _This feels ominous._ Kasumi didn't like the vibe of the room mostly because the aura had always reflected Shepard's bright soothing one.

Kasumi's eyes scanned the room in search of her friend with the hope that her bad feeling was wrong. She spotted the red hair of Shepard along with the silhouette of her hunched over form down at her bed. Her head was resting in her hands as she sat alone in the suffocating silence of her own sadness.

 _Oh, Shep._ She didn't like seeing her like this, filled with melancholy and clearly hurting internally as she struggled to maintain her strength. It made her want to embrace her friend until all of the bad feelings went away, which was exactly what her plan was now.

The thief strode forward into the room and made her way down the short set of stairs leading to the bed. She slowed to a halt next to the woman who had yet to meet her eyes. "Hey Shep." She made her presence known with a low soothing voice. Forcing an overly cheery voice now of all times would be inappropriate and if Kasumi was honest with herself, she couldn't muster one up.

To the sound of her voice, the redhead froze up momentarily before dropping her hands and looking up to the thief. When their eyes met Kasumi felt her entire body seize up and her heart miss a beat. _Shep…_

She had considered the reason she was able to get right next to the woman without her knowing she was there was due to her natural stealth. Part of it was, but as she was now finding out it was also because the N7 was consumed in her sadness.

Her sky blue eyes that were usually filled with joy, mirth or seriousness had agony, grief and defeat written in them. Tears were flowing out of them soaking her cheeks and tank top. Her eyes were bloodshot and the area around them was red and puffy.

"Kas- Kasumi?" Shepard cleared her throat and tried to wipe away the evidence of her tears as the thief stood in shock. This was…this was heartrendingly painful to see.

Never had Kasumi witnessed the N7 in such a state. Sure she had seen her sad or disappointed, Horizon was one of those moments, but never had she seen her so utterly defeated emotionally. Seeing the pain and sorrow in her eyes made her feel like she was being held in a stasis field all the while sending throbbing aches through her heart.

This was a clear reminder of how easily forgotten it was that under the N7 armor, behind the title of Commander and Spectre, beyond the amazing strength of Shepard was a regular person. A person who had the same range of emotions as everyone else and had limits on how much of a beating those emotions could take.

She had an amazing strength of will and could withstand physical and emotional beatings longer than anyone Kasumi knew, yet she wasn't unbreakable or without emotion either. _Move body, move!_ Shepard needed support; she needed at least one person who understood she was just human and allowed her to show these sorts of emotions without judgment, especially right now.

 _She needs you Kasumi, now get moving!_ The stasis holding her body in place wore off allowing the thief to sit down next to her and wrap her friend up in a hug. "Kasumi I—"

"Shh. It—" Kasumi stopped herself as the words " _it's okay_ " were about to leave her mouth. The truth of the matter was Shepard wasn't okay right now and neither was the situation for her. She meant it in a way that was telling her it was okay to be human, to cry and feel what she was feeling, but there was no guarantee that it would be taken that way.

 _What can I say to comfort her? How can I let her know she can let her unbreakable Commander Shepard persona go for now and just be Shep?_ And that was what the unbreakable Commander Shepard was, a persona. It was a way to make others believe and shield them and herself from her humanity. They needed to believe she wouldn't flinch even if she had to walk across Thresher Maw acid or had to face down a horde of Krogan's on her own.

 _My credits would be on Shep for the latter anyways._ A persona or not, Kasumi knew Shepard was the strongest woman in the galaxy. She was only human, but she had a mental fortitude beyond that of regular people. To hold it together as long as she had without letting any of this out? _I doubt anyone else would have been able to do it._

"You don't have to pretend you are okay, Shep. It's just me. You're safe," she finished her statement in a whisper, hoping it would reassure her. For almost a minute the redhead did not move. Her breath shuddered now and then as she remained still, but otherwise there was nothing. Her suffering was as silent as possible, a painfully suffocating silence, but silence nonetheless.

If it wasn't for seeing her tears or feeling her body shuddering against her armored body then the thief would have never suspected anything. At the same time the silence made Kasumi wonder if it was her cue to leave.

She didn't want to; she didn't want her friend to suffer alone when she did so much for others. But…maybe she was wrong for coming up and intruding on her mourning and grieving over a horrible choice she had no power over.

"If…if you want, I'll go."

She was met by silence again. With a soft sigh, Kasumi decided it was as much of an answer as telling her to leave was. She began releasing her embrace, feeling even more disheartened than she had before. _I guess I wasn't much help at all._ Her hug and words didn't have any effect, not that she was surprised. The pain Shepard was going through wasn't something she could easily alleviate, no matter how much she wished she could.

Timid hands reached up and stopped her from detangling herself. "Stay…please. I—…" Shepard's voice cracked. "Please…don't go." Her pain was evident in her pleading voice. The timid hands moved down her arms and wrapped themselves around the thief slowly; uncertain if the solid surface she had run into in her raging ocean of pain would remain or would be pulled out from under her. Her vulnerability made Kasumi shut her eyes as her friends heartache crashed over her body.

Without hesitation she reinitiated her embrace and held the redhead close, who rested her head into the chest of her hooded friend as she cried silently. "I'll be here for as long as you need me. I promise," she reassured.

Kasumi wasn't sure how long they remained in the embrace for. Maybe it was an hour, perhaps more than that. It didn't matter because there was nowhere else she needed or wanted to be.

Holding her best friend in her arms, rubbing soothing circles across her back now and being there for her in her time of need as something solid she could hold onto made her heart feel really warm and pleasant. Sure there was also heartache due to the pain resonating in her friend, but to be here with her in an embrace felt…lovely.

She couldn't explain why this hug felt different than all the other friendly hugs they had shared, but she liked how this feeling felt and didn't care to complicate it by thinking about it too much.

This feeling, it made her wish the embrace wouldn't end so she could stay here like this forever, granted without Shep crying because she didn't want her to hurt like she was now. If there was no other way than that was fine, just as long as she could be here for Shep and give her the support she needed.

Unfortunately their embrace needed to end for one reason: Shepard needed to sleep. _I hope she doesn't have nightmares all night, but she needs to get some sleep. I could see it in her eyes that she hasn't slept much at all since the mission…let's hope my being here helps her sleep._

After a little coaxing when Shepard had regained most of her composure, the thief managed to get the redhead to release her, much to both of their hidden displeasure. She got her to lie down under the covers and not long after she drifted into sleep.

 _I suppose I should go._ She glanced over at the door then back at the sleeping form of her friend, _but what if she wakes up from a nightmare about the mission? I don't want her to be alone right now, at least not until I'm sure she's managed to get her walls back up._

Kasumi looked to the couch from her seat on the opposite side of the bed of Shep. _The couch or the bed?_ She glanced back at the redhead, _I could react quicker from here…Although I do wonder if she accidently tries to cuddle or not. Hopefully nothing really awkward comes out of this,_ she smirked slightly, _then again if something did happen I would have a lot of teasing material to keep her blushing for months._

It was an outcome that would give her a humorous and satisfying result. _Shep might not think it is at first, but I think she'd find it funny…eventually._ Another point for choosing the bed, other than the possible benefit of banter, was that she was a light sleeper. If Shepard started shifting a lot then she would wake up and be able to comfort her if need be.

 _The bed it is then._ It was decided, Kasumi would share the bed with her friend tonight. After getting comfortable—and scooting a little bit closer in hopes for banter ammo in the morning—the thief shut her eyes to find sleep.

The Next Morning

Shepard let her eyes open slowly as she woke up to the feeling of a gloved hand tracing up and down her bare bicep. There was little doubt in her mind who it was…and honestly she was happy Kasumi was still here. Last night had been…painful to say the least prior to Kasumi showing up.

Her friend being there to support her had helped immensely, possibly more than she would ever realize. Even though the redhead had not wanted anyone to witness her in such a defeated state, having someone there who had been understanding and did not question her for letting tears fall meant a lot to her. To stay the night and be ready the next morning as support made her heart feel warm and pumped life back into her being.

Kasumi was a true friend.

The N7 let her eyes shut briefly to take in the comfort offered by her dear friend and the warmth it gave her. Although part of her wished it was a bare hand, the glove didn't take away from the comforting touch at all. It was hypnotizing and made her want to fall back asleep, but she fought to stay awake so she could enjoy the small moment of peace.

She still hurt internally; the wound of the Alpha Relay was one that would not heal overnight or a few days regardless of how good the comfort was. Time would hopefully help to dull it eventually, but for now it was still rather fresh.

With great reluctance, Shepard opened her eyes and turned onto her back to face the thief sitting next to her. She had her hood up as always and even from this angle she couldn't make out a single feature of the shadowed upper half of her face.

She looked away from the book she had been reading and met her eyes with her own as the hand previously rubbing her bicep retracted itself back to her lap. Part of Shepard was extremely upset about that part.

 _Looks like she woke up early and grabbed a book; or she brought it with her last night and I didn't notice._ It was a possibility; she had been so lost in her grief that she hadn't even noticed her friend was in her cabin until she spoke up. _Kasumi could have walked in wearing a bikini and I probably wouldn't have noticed._

Even in her tired mind Shepard knew that was a Thresher Maw sized exaggeration.

Kasumi smiled a genuine smile, breaking the Commander from her thoughts. "Hey there, sleeping beauty."

"Hey," she greeted tiredly but smiled sincerely. Her friend's smile was infectious and warmed her heart even more, further banishing the cold that had filled her body last night.

"Has anyone ever told you how incredibly cute you are when you're asleep?"

A blush immediately began to form on the redhead's cheeks. There was only one person in the entire galaxy who could get away with calling her cute without repercussions, and that person was Kasumi Goto. For an unknown reason to the N7 she could never bring herself to retort anytime Kasumi said it.

At first that wasn't an issue because she never said it. Yet after the first time she said it and found out it was a sure fire way to keeping her speechless, she used it more often to win their banter battles. "Or how about how absolutely adorable it is when you blush?"

And for that reason as well.

" _Kasumi_!" Shepard scolded as her blush grew.

The thief giggled at the response. To her credit she tried to hide it behind her hand, but the mirth glowing in her eyes added on with the sounds escaping her made it quite obvious. Then again the redhead wasn't complaining. Despite her face burning red, the amusement of her friend made her smile.

There was only one person who could get away with it because there was only one Kasumi Goto. She was doing her best to bring some semblance of normality back by teasing the Commander just as she always did. It was refreshing and gave her a little more life than she had felt last night.

She banished her blush and sat up, letting the sheet fall off her body to reveal her still clothed torso. Kasumi got her laughter under control and closed her book before scooting closer. "I know the question is a dumb one, but are you okay?" she asked replacing her teasing tone with one of honest concern.

Part of Shepard considered lying and saying she was better. There was no sense dragging her friend through more of her emotions than she already did. _She did more than enough last night just by sitting with me through my tears._ _I don't need to put any further burden on her._

At the same time, she couldn't blatantly lie to her best friend about this. Kasumi wouldn't press her for the truth if she did lie, but she would know it was a lie. _Kasumi doesn't deserve to be lied to. She didn't have to come up here last night, she didn't have to comfort me or stay the night…but she did._

Shepard was tremendously thankful for that. Without her arriving it was possible she would still be trying to pull herself together. Truth was she didn't want to lie anyways. Not only was Kasumi undeserving of being lied to, but she didn't want to hold the feelings in. She had already let her walls down and hadn't been shunned for it, what sense was there in trying to act tough now?

" _You don't have to pretend you are okay, Shep. It's just me. You're safe."_

The words echoed in her mind and heart assisting her to make her final decision.

"Honestly? No. Not really." Shepard stared down at the foot of her bed. "I've made tough decisions where I had to sacrifice lives. Virmire with Ash, the Battle of the Citadel with the Alliance ships to save the Destiny Ascension…but an entire system of three hundred thousand lives? It's horrible. I just…" She shut her eyes and shook her head as her heart began to ache again. "I don't wish this feeling on anyone."

Kasumi's arm snaked around her upper back and gently began rubbing her right bicep. With the soothing feeling back, the redhead leaned into her friend and rested her head on her shoulder. The master thief gently rested her head on Shepard's and for a few silent moments they both basked in the comfort of being close to one another.

Among the rogue waves, Kasumi was a giant mountain of land stretching higher into the sky than the waves could reach. She provided shelter from the storm and filled her with a much desired peace that would otherwise be hard to find.

"I'm sorry, Shep. I won't pretend to know what you're going through or that I know the words that could make this easier for you." Before Shepard could tell her she had nothing to be sorry for, the thief continued. "What I can say is that you don't have to take this all on your own. You can depend on us just like we have depended on you. We're all still behind you, one hundred percent. And if you ever need someone to talk to, never be afraid to ask me. I'll always be here to help."

Kasumi may not have thought she had the words, but her words provided some solace from her internal storm and made her smile. The support was truly appreciated and it was something Shepard wouldn't soon forget. "Thanks."

"And if you ever need to cuddle like you did this morning, just say the word."

Shepard flushed red and backed away in alarm. "I did what?!" How much had she done in her sleep? Had she snuggled too close to Kasumi and touched her in ways she shouldn't have and didn't have the right to? The N7 would have paled if her face wasn't burning bright red at the last thought.

Kasumi fell into laughter, literally fell over on the bed as she clutched her sides and laughed hysterically at the N7's horrified expression. Her laughter was a terrible sign; it meant she had done something the thief was going to be teasing her about until the end of time.

Shepard groaned and placed her face into her hands in embarrassment. _Seriously body! You had to make me cuddle with her?! I get it, I was feeling vulnerable and wanted someone to hold me, but did you have to force yourself onto her!_ She groaned again, _I'll never live this down. How embarrassing._

"Shep I- Shep I-" Kasumi forced herself up but her own amusement continued to interrupt her. Shepard peeked up at her and noticed the large grin on her friend's face and the teary eyes caused by laughter causing her to groan mentally.

Of all the things that had to happen to her, why did it have to be something so embarrassing? She wasn't even sure of the full extent of what she had done, but she knew it was bad just by how much fun Kasumi was having. Granted her laughter was like a harp being strummed or a violin being played and provided warmth, _but this is so embarrassing!_

"I- I-" The thief wiped away a few tears that had fallen with her smile still firm on her face. "I was just kidding!" Her laughter took over her once again at the dumbfounded turned perturbed look on Shepard's face. All of her previous embarrassment left her in a metaphorical wind as vengeance was swiftly becoming her top priority.

"You little!" Her shout only garnered more laughter as she tackled Kasumi back onto the bed and began play wrestling with her.

"The look on your face was priceless!" Kasumi giggled as she tried to hold back the Commander. Her flexibility gave her an edge, but Shepard had the leverage at the moment and she wasn't going to give it up.

"Stop struggling!"

"Come on! I wouldn't have minded if you cuddled! It would have been perfectly natural!" she teased while laughing.

"Keep it up, Kasumi! It'll only make my vengeance that much sweeter!"

The pair continued to wrestle with another until their sides were sore from laughter and their cheeks hurt from smiling so much. Through it all Kasumi's hood never once fell off, although that was mostly due to Shepard not trying to knock it off and Kasumi keeping it in place most of the time.

Kasumi had managed to turn the tables on her a few times throughout their play fight yet Shepard always managed to find a way to get the fight back in her favor. At the end of it all they were laid out next to one another trying to catch their breaths. "You sure know how to leave a woman breathless, Shep," the thief teased.

"Not bad yourself, Kasumi," she fired back and received a light slap to her stomach.

"Not bad?" She mocked a hurt voice. "I give you a compliment and I only get _not bad_." She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "That's the last time I try to show you a good time."

Shepard laughed heartily before sitting up to stare down at her dear friend. Her chest rose and fell steadily as she stared up at the stars with a smile on her face. Seeing her smile made Shepard smile down at her. "Thank you."

The thief looked up at her with confusion, "For what?"

"For coming up last night, for staying, for cheering me up and for being who you are. You're a great friend, Kasumi."

Kasumi smiled brightly. "Glad I could help, but you would have done the same for me or anyone else, Shep. Well, except for the being me part. I'm one of a kind."

The redhead chuckled. "That you are, my friend. That you are." She was grateful to have a friend like Kasumi in her life, one who showed compassion and could spread her infectious happiness onto others. Her walls had been destroyed last night, but with the help of Kasumi she was able to start taking the steps towards rebuilding them.

For that she would be forever grateful.

Little did either woman know that while their walls were down the seeds of love had been planted in both of their hearts, and somewhere down the line those seeds would blossom into a magnificent love.


	5. Chapter 5

A Hypothermic Wonderland

Anastasia Shepard had never been a huge fan of cold weather. She could see the beauty in the changing seasons and that of white snowed winter, but she preferred temperatures that did not fall below freezing or caused her to sweat just by stepping out the door for five seconds.

Today, however, was not a day to worry about the latter of the two extremes. Today was the day where one dreamed of sunny beaches and warm white sand to counteract the reality of a cold cloudy day where a sea of freezing white snow stretched as far as the eye could see.

Over the years Shepard had been to a few planets in her military career where blizzards were common, Noveria being one of them, but back then she had her armor to protect her from the icy blasts of wind and snow trying to penetrate into her very soul. Her armor had been well insulated and her helmet had ensured that her face never hurt or went numb just because of a passing breeze or the cold temperatures.

Unfortunately she lacked both her armor and the sudden power to change the weather.

Current conditions were a constant reminder of why she wanted to live on a beach with her endearing thief. She had gone from never being entirely fond of cold weather to despising it with her entire being, and that had only ever been saved for the likes of Reapers, the Illusive Man, and Terra Firma terrorists who thought blowing up a refugee camp and forcing her lover into a hospital was a good idea after the war was over.

While it might seem drastic to place chilling temperatures among that list, there was a justifiable reason behind it all. For the week of Christmas, Mother Nature had sent Montreal, Quebec, Canada an unsympathetic blizzard to drop a snowy Sahara Desert right on top of the province. Apparently there were a lot of people on her naughty list this year.

 _If this is what those songs talk about when they desire winter wonderlands, they can count me the hell out next year._ Shepard let out a sigh as her skycar parked itself in the driveway of the house she had rented for six months. It had been a cozy little home, still was she supposed, with a beautiful lake out back when it wasn't frozen over as it was at the moment. There also wasn't a neighbor around for a few kilometers giving a sense of privacy and almost a sense of home, but it wasn't the beach house she and Kasumi were still in search for.

Temporarily living here had seemed like such a good idea in the summer, and at that time it had been. Montreal was beautiful, a bit humid in the summer, but beautiful nonetheless.

Together the two lovers toured Montreal. They had walked the lush Mount Royal Park and witnessed a Tam Tam Jam. The name was derived from the use of hand drums, or tam-tams in French, and brought together both locals and visitors for the festivities of dance, music, and relaxation depending on what you were looking for.

Kasumi had joined the dancing almost immediately and Shepard found herself watching with a fond smile as she admired her lover embracing the energy created by the drum circle of djembes, congas, bongos and other various percussion instruments. It wasn't long after that her lover coaxed the redhead into joining her. At first she had been completely reluctant. Everyone knew the word "dance" and "Shepard" fit together as well as ketchup and ice cream.

After being hit by the puppy dog eyes of her thief, she caved and joined her. The energy she had seen her lover embracing felt almost primal and it had flowed through her body as they moved together with the beat of the drums.

A simple look they shared had ended their dance and led to them quickly dismissing themselves for a passion and lust filled energy building up within them.

They had also visited Old Montreal and all its rebuilt majesty. The Reapers had annihilated structural marvels like the Notre-Dame Basilica and the town square it had been a part of. Although only six years had passed since the end of the war, reconstruction had not wasted time in erecting a carbon copy of the basilica or any of the surrounding area. Shepard was not devout to any organized religion, but the building was without a doubt regal and daunting in equal measure.

Squaring away her retirement four thousand miles away from the main headquarters in Vancouver for a smaller one here in Montreal had gone quite well until winter hit. As she stared out the window at the sea of snow surrounding her it was clear researching weather was something she needed to do in further depth next time around.

Overall their stay in Montreal hadn't been bad, even if she didn't enjoy the cold or the snow she had still had a good time. Really her frustrations were aimed at the Alliance for taking their time making her retirement official because they wanted her to become an ambassador, but the N7 was not going to change her mind on the matter.

" _Ana…I- I know this may be asking a lot, but can you promise me that we'll…settle down and live out on that beach and do what you dreamed of? I know we have to help with repairs and I'm all for it, but after the Relays are up and after we've helped the galaxy get stable…if there comes a time when it looks like they are throwing all the weight on your shoulders, will you please walk away from it all and retire?"_

The memory of Kasumi's plea from six years ago after the war was over and after they had found love played through her mind. _For six years I've done everything I've could to help repair the galaxy and keep the peace we gained through defeating the Reapers,_ Shepard thought, _but the time has come for me to step away from it all just as I had promised her then. They aren't trying to throw all the weight on my shoulders, but the galaxy is stable enough for me to walk away now._

The Normandy was now in the hands of her trusted friend and fellow Spectre Kaiden Alenko with the majority of her crew still under his command, the bulk of the Relays were up, comms throughout the galaxy were operational and everyone was still aiding each other in rebuilding.

She had been the tip of the spear in the Reaper War, though that hadn't really been her decision, and in the end she barely survived it. After six long years of repairs and restoration she was ready to find that beach house and start chasing the dreams she had shared with her thief. Her time as Commander Shepard the Galaxy Hero and master problem solver was at an end. Others wanted that time to last forever, but she had made a promise to Kasumi and intended to keep it.

 _Find peace Shepard. You have earned your rest from conflict._

Those words were not her own, they had been Thane's final request in a message he gave Kolyat to give her should she survive the war. Over the years of repairs she had found small moments of peace whether through witnessing the generosity and compassion of people, spending time with her crew or sharing time with her lover. Those moments were wonderful, but there was always something else needing her attention, another problem to be fixed.

The only way to find the peace Thane asked of her to find was fulfilling her promise to Kasumi and retiring now before she was pressed to give more of herself than she already had. _I feel it in my heart that now is the time to walk away from it all. It's time to embark on a different path; a different journey…_ Shepard glanced back out her window, _unfortunately for me that means leaving the warmth of the skycar for the arctic tundra outside my door for the time being._

It was a balmy -3°C, or 26°F, out there and that was actually the warmest it had been in a week. _It's so warm out there that I only needed two pairs of socks instead of three._ Complimenting her two pairs of socks was a black heavyweight wool jacket that almost reached her knees. It came with a cross-body metal zipper, an oversized hood she could turn, and did turn, into a neck warming cowl and a N7 symbol sewed onto her right hip.

Under that she had her black N7 V-neck on, but that was not her final layer. Even though the wool jacket did a wonderful job at protecting her from the cold, the retiring Commander was unaccustomed to facing the cold without perfectly insulated armor. Her final two layers of clothing for her upper body was a grey long sleeved thermal underwear top made of merino wool and a bra under that.

For bottoms she had on black snow boots, pants and thermal underwear leggings made of the same material as her thermal top. Wool gloves and a winter hat were the final items of warmth she had on. She also had a winter mask but she hadn't worn it because Kasumi had told her it wouldn't be necessary today. Although her thief was more or less right, it was still freeze your face off cold out there in her opinion.

She was sure there was someone outside in a light long sleeve and jeans claiming _"It's not so bad, it's literally thirty degrees warmer than it was last week!"_

If she ran into them she was going to literally slap them across the face with a Warp. There was absolutely no good reason to leave the house without at least two layers of clothing on in this weather.

 _…And I'm stalling so I don't have to go out there._ With great reluctance she shut down the skycar and made sure she was fully bundled up before exiting out into the cold. The sky was colored slate in overcast with small rays of light breaching the darkness now and then before retreating back behind the clouds.

Nearby the house a snowman wearing a scarlet winter hat and scarf with coal eyes, a coal smile, a carrot nose, stick arms and oven mittens for hands greeted her with a wave thanks to an incoming gust of wind. The wind brushed through her hair and against her face making her shiver slightly. _Should have worn a face mask,_ she scolded herself.

The snowman was the creation of Kasumi who, unlike Shepard, did her best to get outside of the house and stay active during the winter whenever it wasn't storming out. One day she had come home to be met by a snowball to the chest while her lover snickered behind perfect cover. Part of her jacket had been unzipped unfortunately and the result was icy snow getting past her clothes and touching her skin.

The single snowball had led to a war in the snow and improved her mood a hundredfold within minutes, it was something her thief was great at doing. Due to her mischievousness, Ana now found herself checking corners and stalking slowly towards the door on every return home to ensure she wasn't ambushed.

Her thief had been halfway done with the snowman when she had come home the day she created it and it had filled her with warmth that neither her clothes could match nor the chill around her could take away. It was adorable, both the snowman and watching her lover humming Christmas carols as she created her masterpiece.

Shepard had helped her with the final touches and then, after taking in the cute moment, got revenge on her lithe thief by dropping a handful of snow down the back of her jacket. _"Ana!"_ Kasumi had yelped then giggled as she struggled in the arms of her lover who was keeping her back pressed against her front in an embrace.

" _I told you I'd get you back for the snow you got down the front of my jacket!"_

 _"That was an accident! What are the odds my snowball would get under all of your layers?"_

 _Pretty damn good apparently,_ the redhead thought as she walked through the snow. It was all in good fun, though. Kasumi always managed to make the best out every situation and aided Shepard into having her own share of fun as well.

Despite her dislike for the cold, Shepard's spirit was never completely downtrodden. She was actually very happy in her heart over finally retiring. She no longer felt burdened and her spirit burned brighter, being around Kasumi only made the feelings more intense.

As she reached the wreath decorated door, she made quick work of unlocking it, slipping in and closing it again before too much cold air could sneak its way in. The temperature difference between outside and inside was like night and day. It wasn't as if she walked into a sauna in winter clothes, but the warmth of the house really made wearing all of her layers really unnecessary.

The inside of the house was decorated for the holiday, a green faux Christmas tree that was halfway decorated sat near the slider doors leading out back, an assortment of stuffed dolls from reindeer and elves to snowmen and Santa Claus were scattered through the house. Red and white stockings adorned the knobs of drawers and doors, lighted faux garland added vibrant life to the walls of the house.

Faint Christmas music played from a sound station giving spirit to the festive decorations. In the living room the fireplace was alight, providing a source of heat as well as a homey greeting.

"Kasumi? I'm back!" she called into the house.

Silence followed. _Hmm. She's either sneaking around the house preparing to ambush me, which I won't put past her, or she's outside._ Not desiring to strip out of her clothes only to have to put them all back on, Ana wiped her boots on the floor mat then proceeded further into the house.

The aroma of fresh baked cookies drew her into the kitchen first. Her stomach growled and began wrestling for control over her body when her eyes found the large plate decorated cookies. There were little frosted green trees with red ornaments, white snowmen adorned with top hats, button noses and coal eyes, reindeers and Santa Clauses. Their aroma was enchanting, practically begging her to grab one of each and sate her weakness for sweets.

 _They look so good._ Shepard placed a hand on the island on which the plate sat as a means of getting closer and pushing herself away as she underwent an internal struggle. _Must resist…must resist._

Her struggle of will was brief but intense. When it came to sweets and Kasumi, maintaining her unwavering stubbornness and will to not give into temptation was next to impossible. The redhead managed to turn away from the cookies without taking one and head to check out the slider doors for her lover. _If I'm not going to give into the cookies, then I might as well give into her._

There was little doubt in her mind that her thief was somewhere outside. While Kasumi could definitely sneak through the house without ever making a sound, she would have certainly made her presence known while the retiring N7 was struggling to ignore her desire to eat at least one of the cookies.

As she approached the window she was proven right by the sight of her lover on the lake... _is she ice skating?_ Anastasia squinted taking in Kasumi's outfit from top to bottom. She wore a black hooded heavyweight jacket with the hood up, snow pants, gloves and a pair of white ice skates.

She was completely at peace from what Ana could tell by body language alone. Her hands were behind her back as she did a short spin in place then continued on her way across the ice. The redhead smiled and slid the door open, slipping out and heading down the small hill of white snow to meet her beautiful thief.

Kasumi noticed her immediately and offered an affectionate smile as she adjusted her trajectory to meet her at the line between snowy land and icy lake. As she slowed her momentum Ana caught her in her arms and twirled her around receiving a giggle from her lover. Kasumi wrapped her arms around her neck as she was spun, lifting her heels up towards the sky until the redhead came to a stop. They shared a quick kiss, the action easing the remaining tension Shepard had in her body.

"Miss me?" she asked, setting her back down on her two skates.

"My dear Commander, how could you ever doubt that? Have I led you down a treacherous path of doubt for who my heart sings for?" Kasumi quipped, dramatically placing a hand over her heart and taking on a mock hurt look.

Shepard released a laugh then shook her head. "Oh, Kasumi. I really need to stash away those books of yours."

The thief gasped. "But then I'll never be able to give you cheesy lines!"

"How scandalous," Shepard responded with a wry smile. Her thief pressed her lips against Shepard's, tracing her tongue along her lips. Before the retiring N7 could grant her entry and deepen the kiss, her lover pushed herself backwards with a teasing smile pulling onto her face and eyes filled with lust. "Not fair, Kasumi," she pouted as she watched her lover glide backwards.

Kasumi tempted her to follow by beckoning the redhead with her index finger. "You and I know playing fair isn't nearly as fun, Ana." Her eyes dared the N7 to follow her onto the ice, and it was a dare she took without hesitation.

There was no chance to slide very well on the ice let alone skate due to the tread on her boots, but she could meet her thief on the ice and capture those lips again. The ice made audible popping and cracking sounds unnerving the retiring Commander but not stopping her forward motion.

The ice was changing due to the temperature fluctuation from the blizzard to the currently warmed up temperatures. It wasn't necessarily weakening as it was still below freezing, but if the temperature continued to rise the ice would thin out until it was too weak to stand on.

She wasn't too worried about it. There wasn't enough sunlight to aid in melting the ice and it wasn't meant to get any warmer than it already was, plus Kasumi had already skated over the areas she was walking on. Had there been any urgent need to get off of the ice her thief would have already vacated the surface. Still, Shepard was naturally cautious and was remaining ever mindful of her surroundings.

When she was ten long strides away from the shore, Kasumi slowed to a stop and gave an elegant bow. "May I have this dance, Anastasia Shepard?"

The redhead extended her hand out for her to take. "You may, Kasumi Goto," Shepard responded, smiling warmly at her thief.

Kasumi smiled in return and gently skated forward, closing the distance between them and taking her hands in her own. Ana had to compensate for the lack of skates but she managed to keep her footing as her thief glided around.

Shepard twirled her into a dip and held her there for a few beats to stare into her gorgeous eyes. "Has anyone told you today how absolutely lovely you are?" she asked.

"Well there was this beautiful sky blue eyed redhead who told me this morning," Kasumi quipped.

"Oh?" Shepard mocked surprise. "Did she also tell how utterly in love she was with you?"

"Yep. She has such a sweet honey tongue and knows how to make a woman swoon."

"She sounds absolutely dashing."

"Oh she is. Her honey tongue is _very_ talented," Kasumi flirted, winking playfully at the woman dipping her.

"Only the best for you, my love," Anastasia responded. She gave her a peck on the lips before lifting her up from the dip and twirling her again, releasing the thief's hand at the end of it. Kasumi spun around then locked her hands behind her back as she glided effortlessly in a circle around the redhead, spinning to skate backwards and forward every now and then. "When did you learn to skate?"

"I learned before I met Keiji," Kasumi answered. "A very bad woman with _way_ too much time on her hands stole a rare jewel from an influential backer of a museum. It was the size of a pebble, but worth almost a million credits because of its rarity. He contacted me to steal it back so he could return it to its display case. Stealing it would prove to be tricky because the woman had turned it into a pendent and kept it on her person at all times."

"So…how did you get the gem?" Shepard queried curiously. She knew Kasumi was the best thief in the entire galaxy, but stealing a necklace off a person sounded next to impossible.

"Well, my target was also a huge fan of ice dancing. She was going to put on a grand performance centered on an ice queen and her kingdom. Her power came from the necklace and anyone who dared to steal it was punished with death, but the hero of the tale saves the kingdom from her tyranny and inherits the necklace rather than destroys it."

Kasumi twirled around and began her return to the N7. "I think she just wanted to show off her wealth, but I heard the performance was incredible. To get the gem I needed to land a part in the play that got me close enough to the necklace to replace it with a phony worthless one. I learned some basic figure skating and managed to get a small role as a thief who tries to steal the gem from the ice queen." Her lover shot her a playful smile. "I was gone before they realized the difference."

Shepard smiled adoringly at her. _I never doubted that for a second._ As her lover neared her she embraced her again then lifted her up bridal style. "I love you, you know that, right?" she asked lovingly.

Her lover gave her a closed eyed smile. "I know." She opened her eyes and nudged the redhead's cold nose with her own. "I lov—"

A long and thunderous _crack_ echoed through the open air, silencing the thief as they both turned their eyes downwards to check the ice. Between her legs, a crack had formed in the ice. It was not a perfectly straight line but it travelled both towards the shore and further onto the lake. "Maybe we should get off the ice?" Kasumi asked nervously.

The sound alone had made them both jump, the crack was just icing on a near heart stopping cake. She nodded in agreement and set Kasumi back on her skates. "Better to be safe than frozen like a Popsicle I always say."

"Since when was that something you said?" her thief questioned humorously. She turned around and began skating backwards to maintain eye contact as Shepard began walking briskly to keep pace.

"Ever since Mother Nature decided to drop a tundr—"

Shepard's eyes bulged as the solid surface under her feet disappeared. Ana gasped as her lower half was submerged in the icy water sending a shock straight through her body unlike anything she had ever felt before. Survival instincts kicked in driving her to grasp at the breaking ice in an attempt to keep herself from falling further in. "Ana!" Kasumi's panicked voice called to her.

Her hands couldn't find anything to clutch onto as her rapid momentum dragged her further down. It was like the kraken had wrapped a tentacle around her leg and was pulling her into its domain to claim her as its next meal.

The numbing was almost instantaneous as she was completely immersed under the water. Every opening in her clothing, whether small or large, had provided entry for the icy daggers to slip through her defenses. Fear and pain constricted her body in equal measure as her desire to escape this icy prison took hold.

* * *

Kasumi's heart was a hammer and her ribcage was an anvil. Each strike was harder and faster than the last sending thunderous vibrations and ear piercing _clangs_ through her senses. No great weapon was being forged, only a great fear.

Instinct guided her to stop her backwards motion and rush safely to the hole formed in the ice. As she neared it she stopped herself again and knelt down to her knees as she frantically waited for her lover to emerge back out of the water.

 _This is not good, this is really not good._ She knew the dangers of cold water. It was extremely dangerous, capable of robbing body heat at least twenty-five times faster than cold air could. In their current weather hypothermia was a matter of minutes, possibly even seconds.

Protective instinct tried to drive her into diving into the water in an effort to save her lover, but common sense continued to relay the knowledge of how dangerous and idiotic that plan of action would be through her central nervous system. Doing so kept her from acting on impulse and thus still capable of saving her Shep.

Ana suddenly emerged out of the water taking in a deep breath of air, her red hair and hat were completely soaked and her thick clothing was already following. "Ana!" Her lover's beautiful sky blue eyes were wild, darting around in all directions yet seemingly not seeing anything. Her arms flailed in the water in search for a surface to grab onto while also fighting to keep her afloat.

Kasumi reached out to her but the woman didn't seem to even see her there. "Ana! Take my hand!" she called to her again. Seconds were ticking by and each second she was in the water was another second tallied towards a mandatory hospital visit. Her breathing was struggled and her body was already visibly shaking. "Ana, I'm here for you. Just take my hand," she pleaded. She couldn't reach any further otherwise she would risk falling in or the getting too close to the hole in the ice causing it to shatter from under her as well.

Long panic filled seconds passed before Shepard regained her bearings. She clasped the extended hand with a weak grip but it was all Kasumi needed. The thief gripped the hand tightly and pulled her closer to the edge. Once she was at the edge Shepard placed her other hand on the ice and began lifting herself out as much as she could.

 _She's already losing a lot of her strength._ In any other circumstance this small climb would have been a piece of cake for the woman to get out of. The icy water, however, was undoubtedly in the process of numbing her body and moving all efforts to try to rewarm her body through shivering. The more she moved, the more energy she would expend resulting in lost heat. Her body would continue to lose strength and heat in equal measure if she remained in the water until she went unconscious or worse.

 _I have to get her out of this._ The redhead's hand collapsed under her weight but even then she was still struggling with her legs to kick herself up onto the ice. Pure survival instinct beaten into her during military and N7 training was all she was running on. Her will to live would push her forward until her body gave out on her. That was absolute.

Kasumi maintained her grip on the woman and used her strength to pull her from halfway out to all the way out. This was only the beginning though, they had to get back into the warmth of the house. "Don't you quit on me, Ana. You didn't survive a Reaper War to be frozen into an ice cube," Kasumi tried to keep lighthearted against the pyramid of anxiety being built in her heart.

Shepard strangled out a laugh, or perhaps it was just her struggle to breathe. The master thief wasn't sure and she wasn't planning on waiting around to find out. She moved swiftly over to her and began helping her onto her feet. Doing so on skates was no easy task, yet Kasumi wasn't going to lose her footing when it was needed most.

"And this is why you don't taunt Mother Nature, Shep. She always has the last word," she tried to tease again, but the growing pyramid continued to expand as she braced the woman. _Her clothes are starting to freeze over._ Her eyes darted to the house from the shivering N7. _I have to move fast._

Without warning, Kasumi picked her up bridal style and began dashing across the ice. "I- I- I-"

"Shh," Kasumi shushed her lover. "Save your breath and focus on staying alive. We'll talk later."

 _Don't think about death, Ana. Please don't even consider that._ The path towards chasing the dreams they shared was laid out before them much like the path into the house, all they had to do was climb this final hill and then it was a straight shot into a place of comforting warmth. _We are so close. Don't give up now._

It was as much of a plea to her lover as it was motivating herself to climb the snowy incline in ice skates. _One wrong step and we're both going down._ Kasumi steeled herself and placed one foot forward. _I climbed down without falling. I'll make it up the hill without falling too._

Step by step she climbed, taking time to ensure she had her footing before attempting to step again. _Probably a bad time to start singing about placing one foot in front of the other to get to the door,_ she quipped halfheartedly. This pace was consuming too much valuable time, but there was little else she could do. If she rushed her steps then she'd risk losing her footing and forcing the already freezing woman into something else that was cold.

Kasumi finally made it to the slider door and reached under Shepard's leg to slide the door open as far as she could. Luckily it slid open about halfway on the first push allowing her to use her foot to push it the rest of the way open.

The thief rushed, or rushed as fast as she could in skates, further into the house and to the fireplace. She sat her lover down on the floor near the fire then immediately fell onto her own butt to take the skates on her feet off. She made swift work of the laces and tossed the blades unceremoniously out of the way.

 _I have to get her out of those clothes and into dry, warm clothes,_ she thought. She looked down to her own clothes and made her decision. They were practically the same size save for a few discrepancies, but they wouldn't affect the redhead unless she suddenly grew a bigger bust. _I hope she doesn't. I love her cute breasts._ Kasumi shook her head, _really not the time for that._

Kasumi stripped everything off of herself; her heavyweight jacket, purple tank top, gloves and grey merino wool long sleeved thermal underwear top being the first to go. Next were her snow pants, thermal leggings and socks.

Once she was only in her underwear and the cool metal of the N7 tags and necklace holding them lay against her skin, she got on her feet and dashed to the bathroom to grab towels, shutting the slider door on the way.

With an armful wedged under her she rushed back to her Shep who was trembling while trying to get her jacket off. Her soggy hat and gloves were already discarded on the floor, though it seemed taking those off had been a monumental task with how slow she was moving.

Without speaking the thief knelt down next to her and began unzipping her cross-body zipper, gently rolling the jacket off her shoulders and tossing the dripping wet item in the direction of her skates along with the gloves and hat.

"Can you lift your arms up?" she asked softly, grabbing at the hem of her N7 V-neck and long thermal underwear top. _I don't want to cause you any pain, but we have to get these clothes off._ The sopping cotton fabric of her shirt clung to the redhead's body adding more droplets of water to the growing puddle.

Shepard gave a weak nod and, with great labor, lifted her arms above her head. Pain was etched on her face as her arms trembled from the chill and effort to remain above her head. Kasumi peeled the layers off as fast and gently as she could so the redhead could let her arms rest at her sides again.

After discarding her bra and the other previous articles of clothing she moved to her lower body and took the rest of it off until she was stark naked.

Normally, like before, some part of her mind might have taken time to admiring her body, but there was no moment of pause for the thief. She was on a mission and her focus was dead center on aiding her lover. When everything was back to normal she would take her time ogling over every inch of her.

She proceeded to dry off Anastasia and the floor around her, redress her in dry clothes and then wrap her up in a few blankets. _There,_ Kasumi thought as she finished, _she should start warming up now._ She looked down at herself and the goosebumps left over from the chill of droplets of icy water touching her skin. _I guess I should get dressed so I can be warm as I take care of her._ "I'll be right back, Ana," she whispered and gave the shivering woman a kiss on her icy cheek.

A cold trembling hand rested on hers. "Sta- stay. Pl- pl- please."

"I will. But I need to get dressed," she said. _I'm no expert in helping hypothermia, but the fact she is aware of my presence and can form some words has to be a good sign…right?_ Kasumi bit the inside of her lip. _I don't want to take chances. I need to call Miranda. She may know how to help. She did rebuild Ana after all._

Kasumi let her lip go and nodded internally at the plan. Miranda would have good advice or would tell her if she needed to get Ana to a hospital immediately. On the outside she let a teasing smile form on her lips. "Although I'm sure you might get hot under the collar at me almost naked, it's not the kind of warmth we're going for."

Shepard offered a weak smile in response and relinquished her feeble grip. Kasumi gave her redhead another kiss on the cheek before leaving to get some clothes on. She put on a black camisole, a long grey flowy cover-up and shorts marked with a small N7 logo.

 _I hope Miranda isn't busy,_ she thought as she opened her omni-tool and dialed the former Cerberus Operative, praying she wasn't in the middle of something important mission based or love based with Jack.

It didn't take more than a second for her to pick up. "Kasumi?" she answered. "This is odd. I thought you and Shepard were away for the holidays."

It was true that it was odd. Kasumi did keep in contact with Miranda, but it was usually through Shepard. There were rare occasions where she did call, but none of those had ever been something even close to this situation. "We are. Are you busy?" Kasumi questioned.

"Not at the moment." _Thank goodness._ The thief released a sigh of relief. "What's wrong? You sound troubled."

"Shep fell into a frozen lake."

The sound of the former Cerberus Operative spitting out whatever she was drinking followed by coughing echoed in her ear. _Whoops…perhaps I should have made sure she wasn't drinking anything._ "What!" Kasumi winced at the shout of unadulterated shock. "Did you get her out?"

"Of course I did!" Kasumi fired back a bit peeved at the notion that she might have simply left Shepard in the water. The thief took a calming breath and reminded herself that Miranda was obviously worried about the current state of health her friend was in. "I need to know if there is anything else I can do or shouldn't do."

"Where is Shepard now?" Miranda asked.

"Under warm blankets with dry clothes on in front of our fireplace," she told her.

Miranda released a sigh, her tension easing slightly at the news. "Okay, that's definitely a good start. Were you there when she fell in? Do you know how long she was in the water or what her temperature is?"

"I was." Kasumi closed her eyes and thought back to the moment. "She was submerged completely for maybe twenty or thirty seconds. After that…I don't know, a minute, maybe two. She wasn't in it for longer than five minutes. I haven't checked her temperature yet."

"Okay, make sure you check that. The average body temperature is 37°C, or 98.6°F. There is some play with it, but anything below 36.1°C, or 97°F, is bad. If it is below 32.2°C, or 90°F, you need to get her to an emergency center. Is she still alert and shivering?"

 _Why am I not surprised Miranda knows those exact numbers off the top of her head. Then again it is because she knows that stuff off the top of her head that I called her._ "Yes and yes," she answered.

"Good. Her case may not be that severe," Miranda said. Kasumi released another sigh of relief. _At least clinically it may not be severe, even if it does scare the hell out of me regardless._ "What you may want to do is place warm, damp cloths to her neck, trunk and groin."

"How come?"

"Afterdrop. Cold blood in her extremities is going to return to her core. In the process of returning it will continue to decrease her body temperature. Because she went from insanely cold into almost immediate warmth instead of gradually rewarming she could be a lot more susceptible to it. The warm cloths will help to progressively warm the cold blood, preventing afterdrop."

 _She's right. Ana did go from one extreme temperature to another._ Kasumi moved into the master bath of their house and grabbed a few hand towels. "Anything else?"

"Be careful about sharing your body temperature with her," she warned. "I know you'll want to cuddle close in hopes to share your warmth, trust me I would want to do the same if I was in your shoes and Jack fell into a frozen lake. But if you do that you risk lowering your body temperature dramatically as well." That deflated the thief's plan completely, but she would trust Miranda's judgment. "Her body will rewarm on its own. If her condition doesn't change or worsens then get her real medical help."

"I will. I'll keep you posted on her condition," she said.

"Thanks Kasumi."

They said their farewells and Kasumi returned to her lover with the hope that everything would be fine.

Hours Later

Night had fallen over Montreal. The stars and moon were covered by a blanket of clouds as a lazy breeze rolled over the settled snow covered land. All across the city, lover's and families remained in the warmth of their homes either finishing their final preparations for Christmas Eve, the start of Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or were simply spending time together.

Inside the cozy house on the lake, the fireplace was still crackling with life and peaceful Christmas music created a tranquil aura for the two occupants after many long hours of worry and pain.

From the moment Kasumi ended the call with Miranda to now she had been doing everything in her power to help Shepard; she switched out her warm compresses when they no longer provided heat, she took her temperature to monitor her status, and helped her walk later on in her recovery when she was feeling up to it. Whatever her lover needed, Kasumi would provide it.

Shepard was still wrapped up in front of the fireplace, soaking in the warmth while the thief was returning from the kitchen with the plate of cookies she had made and replacement towels. Her redheaded lover was looking much better, still a bit stiff and cold, but overall her condition had improved dramatically.

Kasumi wasn't sure if they still needed to use the warm compresses, but she wasn't going to take any risks. The whole situation had terrified her from the initial plunge to the effects the icy water had on her lover. She couldn't pretend the situation wasn't serious or act like watching her lover shiver and feeling her cold skin didn't concern her at all. _I've been a fretting mother hen ever since and I'm not stopping until I know Ana is back to normal._

She returned to the redhead and knelt down next to her, placing the plate of cookies on the floor before starting to replace the other towels. "Feeling any better?" she asked as she worked.

The sky blue eyed woman met her eyes with a warm smile. "Much better thanks to you." Kasumi offered a smile in return, but inside she felt incredibly guilty. _It was because of me that we were even on the ice in the first place,_ she thought. _This would have never happened if I didn't tease her into coming onto the ice with me._ "Hey, what's wrong?" Shepard asked.

A frown had creased her lips as her thoughts trailed to the guilt lying within her heart. "I'm sorry." She hated that it had happened. Shepard had been through enough physical, mental and emotional agony thanks to the Reaper War. They were meant to be retiring and leaving that all behind them, yet because of her she had to go through more pain.

Ana raised a red eyebrow at her apology clearly confused at the sudden apology. "Sorry? What are you sorry for?"

"It was because of me we were even on the ice. If I would have just got off the ice when you got back…you wouldn't have had to fall in the lake."

"Kasumi, it was an accident," her lover said, her comforting eyes penetrating deep into her soul. "It wasn't your fault that I fell through the ice." Usually her words and the comfort in her eyes would have crushed her guilt in an instant, but in those calming sky blue orbs she could see the fear that had overcome her as she resurfaced.

"Ana—"

Ana leaned up and gently pressed her lips against the thief's, preventing any sort of argument she might try to form. Her lips were warm and soft instead of cold and chapped serving as a reminder that she was indeed alive. In all of her fears, the fear of the stunning woman she was blessed to have currently placing a butterfly light kiss on her lips dying had been the most dreadful of them all.

She knew Shepard was a woman with one of the strongest wills to live, surviving the Reaper War was all the evidence Kasumi needed to prove that point. She just…worried, a lot. Her lover had survived so much, what if this incident was _the one_?

As their lips melded together in a deeper kiss, familiar serenity overcame her. She let it take over her senses and shut her eyes to feel everything she had feared she may never feel again.

Her lover parted from her when she felt the tension in the thief gliding away on the wind of love. Leaving her lips made Kasumi yearn to capture them once more and hold her in an eternal lip lock, but she relented and opened her eyes again to stare into the sky blue orbs of solace she desperately sought.

"It was an accident," the redhead said softly, "and I'm okay now. Don't blame yourself for it. Prior to my icy bath I was enjoying our time together."

Kasumi had been too. She liked the peace of mind skating gave her, but being out there with Ana and sharing a small dance had been deeply pleasing. She reveled in being with the redhead and the ability to create new memories of the purest peace and love she had ever experienced.

Still, she felt at fault for the terrible torture Shepard endured thanks to the freezing lake water. "I enjoyed it too…but what you went through could have been avoided completely if I just got off the ice."

"Hmm. Sounds like you need to make it up to me." Ana's voice was full of jest, but it didn't ease Kasumi out of her guilt completely.

"Ana, this isn't funny," she scolded tiredly as she sat down next to her completely and wrapped her long flowy cover-up around her body. She wanted to embrace the teasing and pretend it never happened…but watching her Shep grasping at the ice before plunging deep into the lake was prevalent in her mind. It was like one of those horror movies where someone had to watch a person they cared for get tugged away by some sort of monster.

Her lover scooted closer and opened up her cocoon of blankets only to enclose Kasumi within it with her. "I know. Trust me I know how completely not funny falling into the water was. But unless you happened to sabotage the ice to get me to fall in as an excuse to cuddle under warm blankets next to a fireplace, then it wasn't your fault."

"That would be completely unnecessary," Kasumi said, shooting a weak teasing smile to her lover, "and utterly ingenious if it wasn't so cruel."

Shepard smiled in return and rested her chin on Kasumi's shoulder. "But you have to admit, you do owe me three little words I was robbed of earlier."

"Oh?" she feigned ignorance. "What three little words might those be?"

"Oh you know, simple words that express your undying love for me."

"Hmm," Kasumi looked up at the ceiling as if she was in deep thought, "three words to express my undying love for you?" She brought her eyes back down to meet her lover's. "Can I use five instead?" Ana nodded. "You mean everything to me."

Ana's eyes softened at her words and the love she had put behind them. It didn't matter how many times she said them, she meant it every time and would never stop feeling this way. They had stolen each other's hearts and neither were getting them back or wanted to take them away from the person they cherished most.

Kasumi found her left hand under the blankets and began tracing the rose tattoo on her wrist with the tips of her fingers. She took pride in knowing every inch of her lover's body and her ability to trace every scar, every muscle, every curve of her body and even her tattoos in the dark with expert precision. Feeling her warm skin under the tips of her fingers gave her a sense of security. The simple touch anchored her to the woman and the reality they were in.

"Watching you fall in terrified me," she spoke in a haunted in whispered. "…then you didn't come back up right away. I thought…I thought I'd be spending our first Christmas in a hospital…or alone."

"Sorry to break it to you, but you won't be getting rid of me that easily." Kasumi let out a soft laugh at Shepard's light jest. The N7 slowly intertwined their hands and gave it an affectionate squeeze. "I'm here, Love. I'm here," she whispered tenderly.

"I love you, Anastasia Shepard."

"I'm yours forever, Kasumi Goto," Shepard murmured the proclamation of love she had tattooed on her wrist.

The two leaned in closer and engaged one another in a passionate kiss. Their tongues met in a beautiful dance, both falling into sync with the other as they poured their hearts into it. Kasumi felt all of her worries wash away in a sea of love. Wave upon wave of pleasure crashed onto her as the feel of their interlocked hands and her lover's lips on her kept her anchored to this marvelous reality.

The pair parted slowly. The thief shut her eyes and bit her bottom lip as she inhaled a calming breath through her nose. "Thank you for taking care of me."

Kasumi reopened her eyes as a loving smile pulled onto her lips. She gave her redhead's hand an affectionate squeeze and nestled closer. "I'll always be here for you, whenever you need me."

"Thank you, my love," Shepard whispered lovingly.

For a long while the two lovers sat in front of the fire. Sometimes they would shut their eyes and soak up the bliss with their other senses, their fears and pains from earlier completely forgotten in this place of peace and love they had found together. Other times they would find bliss in a kiss, sharing what lay in their hearts.

Eventually they were stopped by a low growl echoing from Shepard's stomach. Kasumi giggled to herself as the redhead fought a blush. "Uh, mind if I snag a few of those cookies? I'm starving."

"One batch of cookies coming right up, my dear Commander," Kasumi said, giggling as she snuck out of the blankets to get the nearby plate.

"Laugh it up, Kasumi."

"Oh I will."

Love, laughter and cookies was the best way to end any day, especially when all three were shared with someone you loved.


	6. Chapter 6

Our First Christmas

Sunlight gleamed down onto the white snow covered land of Montreal. Clouds were few and far between being carried through the blue sky on a light breeze that brushed across the snow without disturbing it. Houses were decorated in a variety of festive ways on the outside from different types of colored lights to reindeer, angels, sleighs and other assortments of decorative lawn ornaments.

Some of the houses were left unoccupied as people left for an early Christmas Eve service at the Notre-Dame Basilica or a different church, others were taking their significant others for a romantic Christmas Eve lunch because the restaurants were completely booked for dinners. There were some who were out finishing the last of their shopping, rushing from store to store in hopes the item they were trying to get was in stock or looking for deals while others had simply went south for the winter.

For the occupants of the cozy little home on the frozen lake, it was a time to relax at home since they had done all their shopping and did not desire to sit in a packed restaurant for a romantic night. Christmas music played from their sound station with the redhead humming along as she was preparing a second batch of cookies while her first set were baking in the oven.

Shepard wore a loose flowy red scoop neck shirt paired with knee-length black shorts and a red and white Santa Claus hat on her head. On the front of the hat across the white trim, the words _Nice_ were stitched in red in large cursive writing. She also had her N7 hoodie tied around her waist for the off chance she suddenly got cold or had to take a quick trip outside.

Nearby, her lovely thief was organizing the last of her presents under their fully decorated tree. The faux fir had presents of varying sizes under it wrapped in red, green and blue wrapping paper with decorated Christmas trees, Santa Clauses, and white snowflakes on them respectively.

Kasumi was in a silver formfitting long sleeve and knee-length black shorts with two dark purple stripes running down the sides. Around her neck, per the usual, were Ana's N7 tags shining in all their glory as a physical display of their entwined souls much like the redhead's tattoo. On her head was a red and white Santa Claus hat as well only _Naughty_ was stitched into it instead of _Nice_ with piece of fabric made mistletoe hanging on the white ball.

Shepard thought she looked gorgeous, but then again she felt that way whether Kasumi was completely nude or bundled up in three layers of clothes. So long as her eyes never lost their light and her smile continued to be as bright as a supernova and just as warm, she would never be anything less than the most stunning woman in the galaxy.

Of course being involuntarily dropped in a frozen lake for a swim did little to keep either as they were. As far as terrible things the sky blue eyed woman had gone through, falling in a frozen lake was now fairly high on her list. Even two days later she could still feel the chill of the freezing water hitting her skin as she was submerged in the icy liquid. Any time her thoughts lingered on the memories too long her body would shiver against her will. Thankfully she had more than enough reasons not to think about it and even more places to put her attention.

The next two days would be the first Christmas Eve and Christmas the two lovers would be able to share off the Normandy and in general. While the day did not suddenly disappear during the years they had been together, the pair had never celebrated or paid mind to it. There was always something that needed their attention when they were helping with the recovery efforts, and when they weren't they were spending time with each other or their friends.

Now that she was practically retired they were able to enjoy the holiday spirit even if they didn't follow the religious part of it. For them it was about spreading happiness and generosity where they could as well as using the time of year as just one more reason to spoil each other with love.

The atmosphere of Christmas was one Shepard enjoyed. The peaceful and good cheer music along with the decorations people put up made the entire season of winter brighter even when you were snowed in. Not even falling in the lake could douse her spirits, not when the smell of baking cookies consumed her sense of smell or when there were cheerful decorations around the house giving walls, countertops and other spaces of the house bright life.

Perhaps the most prominent reason her spirits never fell was because Kasumi was here with her. Her infectious happiness and beautiful soul made Ana's heart beat stronger every time they were close. Neither the ice cold snow nor the delays from the Alliance on her retirement could keep her down with her thief around. All it took was a meeting of eyes or a smile and everything else in her life that did not revolve around Kasumi or their love melted right off of her.

 _I'm lucky to have her,_ she thought as she admired the beautiful woman from the kitchen.

Kasumi readjusted one final present before standing up to take in the fruits of her labor. Anastasia smiled softly at her as she fought the urge to leave her cookies and embrace the woman from behind so she could kiss her and whisper words of love in her ear.

There wouldn't have been Christmas decorations up in this house or presents under the tree organized in a presentable fashion if it weren't for the lithe thief for a variety of reasons. Without Kasumi there would be no reason for her to retire early or celebrate any sort of holiday whether it was Valentine's Day or Christmas. _If we had never fallen in love, I'd probably still be working in the Alliance either on the Normandy or somewhere else._

Shepard was curious as to what her lover did get her for Christmas, but there was no material item that could match up to the embodiment of joy and love that Kasumi was. She was a gift all on her own, one that was far more precious than any jewel that existed in the galaxy and a million times more beautiful.

Without her it was likely the N7 would have died in the freezing cold water or as she tried to get back to the house because of hypothermia or complications caused by it. Her body had felt extremely fatigued by the time she got out of the water, almost as if she had been blasted by Harbingers beam and forced herself to stand back up and stagger forward all over again.

Between the bouts of dizziness and constant shivering she barely had enough senses about her to know her lover had gotten her into the warmth of the house. All she wanted was for her lover to hold her and never leave. Hindsight told her it was best that she hadn't, but at the time she needed the comfort being held by the woman gave her. She needed something solid and warm to hold onto to anchor reality into her mind instead of the dizzy freezing world she felt trapped within.

To her credit, Kasumi never left her side except to replace warm compresses. Even though she made sure Ana kept her hands inside the warmth of the blankets, she did offer cuddles and kisses as a perfect substitute.

On a positive note, the incident with the lake was behind them. Now Shepard could cuddle and kiss the woman because she took pleasure in it rather than as a means of warmth and comfort as she shivered madly.

Ana let out a content sigh as she smiled at the back of the woman she loved. She was still scrutinizing the gifts, contemplating if she needed to readjust any of them to look more presentable. _I love how invested she is in what she is doing, but I don't want her worrying about the gifts all day. They look wonderful how they are now._

"They look perfect, Love," Shepard called to her.

"You think so?" Kasumi asked, turning around to meet the redhead's sky blue eyes.

"Yes," Anastasia answered honestly. The gifts were all organized in a way that brought even more life to the tree and surrounding area. There was nothing more that needed to be done or added to either. "Besides," she continued in a teasing fashion, "you don't want to spend hours readjusting the gifts a centimeter in any direction like Miranda would, do you?"

"That's…a good point," the thief conceded. Miranda wasn't really _that_ fanatical about organization, or at least not from Shepard's experience around her, but her point had gotten through. The gifts were perfect how they were now and overanalyzing their organization would cause needless fretting when they were meant to be relaxing.

"I don't know…" Kasumi trailed off and returned to staring at the presents. "It just…it feels like it's missing something."

 _Not from my angle,_ Ana thought as her eyes traced the form of her lover's body. The silver long sleeve hugged her lissome body leaving little to the imagination, although that was not a complaint.

Her choice of apparel today simply made the redhead want to peel it off and run her hands along the curves of her lover's body as she left a trail of kisses all across it. _If I'm honest, she makes me feel like that even when she's bundled up in a sweater and snow pants._ She let her eyes trail across her shoulders and down the long waterfall of black hair causing her to wish to get her fingers lost in the waves of silky tresses.

After taking in the shape of her back and traveling further south then returning back up, Shepard glanced at the timer on the oven and noted she had some time to kill before those cookies were ready. Her second batch was all ready to go and would have to wait until the others were done so she chose the only logical decision she had.

She moved from the kitchen as slowly and as stealthily as possible to get the drop on her lover. The distance wasn't more than a stone's throw away and was easily shortened to a few steps away by the redhead.

 _Almost there…_

 _Beep!_

Her omni-tool beeped indicating a call as it suddenly flared to life completely ruining her stealth in the blink of an eye. Kasumi turned around in surprise only to smile at the sheepish looking N7. "…and that's why you silence your omni-tool on stealth missions," Ana muttered.

Kasumi giggled lightly at her then gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Finish your call and I'll give you another shot."

"You spoil me," Shepard said, smiling as she did.

"Only because I love you," Kasumi replied with a wink.

Her kiss and wink only made the retiring Commander want to forget the call and pull her into a kiss. It also made her want to strangle whoever happened to be on the other line for ruining her stealth, but she relented against both feelings and opened her omni-tool to figure out who was on the other end.

 _Anderson?_ Shepard furrowed her brow causing the thief to raise an eyebrow in confusion. "Who is it?" she questioned.

"Anderson." The Admiral had luckily been found and saved immediately after the war was over by Commander Bailey and his team. If the team had taken another hour or two it was possible he would have bled out before help could have saved him.

Despite having her brow furrowed, she wasn't upset about him calling. He was her mentor and a friend who she didn't mind hearing from even if it was a holiday. What caused her to stare at her omni-tool in such a way was because he was in London with Kahlee Sanders on holiday the same as her. _He might just be calling to wish us a Merry Christmas…but he dropped by to wish us that before he left for London._

There was a possibility it was nothing serious, yet Ana couldn't help but feel cautious about why her mentor was calling. _I sincerely hope the Alliance isn't trying to get him to convince me to stay…no,_ she shook her head mentally, _Anderson respects my desire to retire._ Then what was the cause of the sudden call? _I guess there's only one way to find out what's going on._

"I'll be right back," Shepard told her lover before turning to take the call in the quiet sanctuary of their bedroom. As she walked there she answered the incoming call with jest in her voice. "With respect Sir, weren't your words, 'Have a Merry Christmas, Shepard…and don't bother calling while I'm on holiday. I won't answer.'"

Her mentor chuckled on the other end. "I believe they were, Shepard." His voice held no stress or indications of something going wrong which made the redhead relax a little. "Sorry if I interrupted anything, but I needed to speak with you."

There was no urgency the words he said. Anderson was his usual self from what she could tell by verbal cues. _Well at least nothing is wrong. I wonder what's going on._ "You didn't interrupt anything." _Except my stealth._ "How is your holiday going? Everything okay?"

Shepard entered her bedroom and sat down on the bed as she awaited her mentors answer. "Everything is going well. Kahlee and I were just preparing to go out for dinner so I promise I won't keep you long. You wouldn't believe how hard it was to get a reservation," Anderson said seriously, yet also in jest.

"Heh," Shepard breathed out a chuckle, "no, I do. It's the same here in Montreal. Restaurants are all booked around here. Kasumi and I figured it would be best to stay in today and tomorrow."

"I don't blame you. Any word from the Alliance as of late?" he asked.

"I haven't heard from them in a few days. Why?" It was a seemingly random question yet the redhead knew her mentor was leading up to something. He had places to be and wouldn't be wasting time on small talk. As she contemplated the curious question, Kasumi entered the room and leaned against the doorframe as she stared at the redhead with an inquisitive look.

"Ah, good, they didn't spoil the surprise." _Surprise?_ Anderson continued before Shepard could voice her thought. "I've been meaning to tell you this for a few weeks but I was under strict orders to wait until today to make it official. I'm pleased to inform you that you are officially retired, Shepard."

Ana found herself paused at the news. Part of her had registered the words and had been overcome by the joy of full retirement. It had been a long time coming and for a while she wondered if the Alliance would ever respect her wishes and let her go. She understood her standing in the galaxy and why they wanted her to stay. She was a hero, a symbol of peace due to her role in bringing together the leaders of every race.

It was probably selfish that she was retiring early and washing her hands completely of being the galactic problem solver. Nevertheless it was her choice and one she had no problem making. Selfish or not, she had made her decision. Perhaps that would get her a bunch of coal from the big man in red, but she had given a lot of herself prior to now.

Of course that did not mean she would suddenly become a selfish scrooge and stop helping others. Helping others in need, being kind and generous, it was just a part of who she was. The galaxy had a larger surplus of those traits after surviving the hell of the war, but there was no reason to ever stop.

One of the reasons she had started to love the spirit of Christmas wasn't because of the possibilities of gifts or the religion behind it. What she loved most about it was an idea, possibly a foolish one, but it was an idea she liked. Her idea was that if everyone just gave a little bit more to others, whether it was time, love, credits or their talents to help people, then the galaxy could remain in peace hundreds or thousands of years from now.

When people looked at her military career and the things she accomplished, they saw a hero completing miracles no one else could…yet Shepard didn't see it that way. She knew that in an alternate universe someone else with a different background, a different skillset and even of a different race and gender could have done the same things she had pulled off.

All it would take was someone who gave more than they took. Someone who had the will to never back down in the face of adversity as they sought peaceful resolutions with a group of people who believed in them and helped picked them up when they stumbled. That wasn't just for a Reaper level threat though, that could be applied to any ordinary person.

If everyone in the galaxy gave sixty percent and took forty, then peace, love and happiness would always be in their grasps.

Christmas had a spirit in sync with that goal, or at least that's what the Christmas spirit was about to her. Either way she wasn't giving up on giving to others. If there was ever dire need of her aid then she would be glad to help, but otherwise her focus was on giving Kasumi the peace, love and happiness she deserved.

That was a daily goal and one she planned to put every ounce of her heart into, but for now she had a conundrum to solve. The other part of her mind, the part that wasn't back flipping in joy over the news about her retirement being official, had picked up on a part of what Anderson had said and was trying to make sense of it.

 _Who the hell told Anderson to wait until Christmas Eve to tell me my retirement was official?_ Anderson was well respected for obvious reasons and there weren't many people in the Alliance who could order him around let alone had the guts to do it.

So who had given him the order?

"Th- thank you," she thanked a bit clumsily. Her delight over official retirement and confusion over her question had collided and threw her off balance.

Her reaction caused her mentor to chuckle at her expense. "You don't have to thank me. You earned it. I'm proud to have served with someone of your caliber as a soldier and as a person, Shepard."

Shepard shut her eyes to hold back the emotions coming over her. Official retirement had made her giddy, but the words of the man she held in the highest regards and had been a father figure to her was pulling her heart strings hard. "Thank you, Sir. It was an honor to have served under your command," she said, struggling to keep her voice even.

"Sir?" Anderson chuckled again. "How many times do I have to tell you to stop going all processional on me, Shepard?" he questioned lightly.

His joke lightened the mood immediately and made the retired N7 choke on a laugh. "One more time it would seem."

Her mentor's voice dropped to a sober seriousness. "You did good, child. You fought against political stonewalling in the face of the Reapers and saw it through to the end. I couldn't be more proud of you." A tear escaped Shepard that she wiped away immediately. "I don't blame you for walking away early. As I said, you earned your retirement. Before I let you go I have one last order for you, so you better listen."

"I will, Sir," she replied.

"Make your dreams a reality. Find that beach house with Kasumi and live the rest of your life in the peace you gained. Understood?" he asked seriously.

"Yes sir," Shepard responded earnestly.

"Good. I've got to go now, but don't be a stranger Shepard. Oh, and have yourself a Merry Christmas."

"You too, Anderson. Before you go, who ordered you to wait until today to make my retirement official?" She wasn't planning on wringing any necks, really she wasn't. Ana just wanted to know who had been the one to order her mentor to wait until now. This was obviously meant as a Christmas gift of some kind either through a combined effort of Hackett and Anderson or just the former.

"Hmm? Oh, you know them. In fact I'd say she's probably standing in the same room as you right now." Shepard's eyes bulged as her eyes darted to Kasumi who had been watching her the entire time.

At her look she gave a sheepish smile. "It wasn't me?" she offered lamely.

"I'll let you two sort this out on your own. I've got a date to keep," Anderson said lightheartedly.

"Have a nice night, Anderson." They gave their farewells leaving Ana to stare slightly star struck at her lover. She had a knack for going the extra mile when it came to surprises. The redhead still couldn't believe the thief managed to hide the Normandy's arrival to the Citadel from her all those years ago. Planning in secret with Anderson to retire her on Christmas Eve was just another one of those surprises that stole away her words.

"You look so cute when you're speechless," Kasumi teased. She then reached up to her Santa Claus hat and flipped the ball of it so it was hanging right at her forehead. "Would you look at that," she flicked her eyes up at the cloth mistletoe attached to the snowball, "I'm under the mistletoe with no one to kiss." She mocked a pout and crossed her arms as she stared at the fabric.

The words and the adorable look on her face managed to break the spell of shock holding the retired Commander in place. With it broken the redhead sprang into action. She pushed herself off the bed and strode forward with a purpose, that purpose being to capture the lips of the woman she loved.

Kasumi lowered her eyes at the sight of movement and let a pleased grin show at the sight of her approaching lover. Clearly her surprise had worked out exactly how she planned it. Anastasia met her at the doorframe and had to slow herself down so she didn't literally tackle the woman down to the floor in a kiss.

She brought her hand forward and caressed her lover's cheek as she steadily closed the remaining distance between them. Their lips melded together in a tender kiss that they parted only briefly from to stare longingly into each other's eyes.

Anastasia found herself getting lost in the deep valleys of love and desire her thief's eyes had turned into. It brought her back to her previous thoughts on peeling off the long sleeve she was wearing along with her red shirt so she could feel their skin brushing against each other.

Those lust filled desires were quickly taking hold of her mind and pushing away all other thoughts not revolving around the stunning woman in front of her. They were no longer in snowy Montreal or on Earth for that matter. It was just Kasumi and her, standing in a doorway with two red Santa hats as the only reminder to what time of year it was.

She lowered her hand from her lover's cheek and placed it on her hip following suit with her other hand. Shepard gently guided her so her back was resting against the doorframe and left only enough space for a single paper written note to Santa to fit between them.

Anastasia reached up and moved the snowball of Kasumi's hat to the side then rested her forehead against hers. "I love you," Shepard said softly.

"And I love you."

Their lips met again in what started as a slow tender kiss but began to escalate the longer they lingered into a more passion blinded one. Kasumi's hands traveled deep into her red locks of hair as that paper distance completely evaporated.

Ana's hands glided under the long sleeve and across the soft warm skin of Kasumi's fit abdomen, guiding the clothing up as she traveled higher. She needed to get her out of these barriers and show her how much she appreciated her surprise. It didn't matter if it was right here against the doorframe, on the floor or on the bed, Ana would give her anything and everything she wanted in return for not only this surprise, but for also stealing her heart years ago.

She left her lover's velvety lips and began kissing down her neck as the thief rested her head back against the doorframe and bit her bottom lip. The redhead's roaming hands brought the shirt up just enough to reveal her lover's beautiful bra covered bosom. She had already placed a long trail of kisses down her neck and continued to create a trail down onto the new uncovered land of flesh. Kasumi let her fingers fall out from her hair and grabbed at the scrunched up hem of her long sleeve to pull it the rest of the way off, taking her hat with it in a clumsy fit of lust.

Ana gave a soft laugh as she glanced up at the scene but with the returning of knowledgeable fingers into her fiery locks she continued where she left off. She cupped and showered her lover's breasts with kisses earning sharp inhales and shaky exhales for her efforts. The fabric was getting in the way though and it needed to be remedied.

She returned to her lover's luscious lips and tried to sate the insatiable feeling bubbling inside as her hands slipped behind her back to the clasp of her bra. Anastasia let out a victorious hum into their kiss as she undid the clasp in turn making Kasumi giggle and remove her hands from her long locks to allow the N7 to remove her bra and toss it to the tangled up red hat and silver long sleeve.

With her bosom no longer confined by the bra, the redhead moved back in to capture one of the pink nubs. Her thief's body lost every bit of tension within it as her breathing struggled to remain even. She ran her hands along Ana's shoulders and clasped them behind her neck as she had her velvet peaks teased by a learned tongue and fingers.

A gasp left the woman when Ana gently but playfully nipped her. Both women shared a short laugh at the action and reaction before falling back into their pleasure. Shepard paid proper attention to both of her rose buds taking both her time to give pleasure and finding it in the reactions she received for her actions.

Pleasing Kasumi was something she delighted in and now was no different. Ana wanted to give her as much pleasure she could take, and then a little more so she was thoroughly satisfied. She loved feeling her melt in hands as the thief was overcome by the sensations given to her much like she was now. But this wasn't the best position to fulfill those desires.

She placed a kiss on both of her lover's breasts then returned to her lips for a quick kiss. Kasumi desperately tried to remain in the kiss but was left unsatisfied for the moment. "To the bed, my love?" she asked.

"Only if it means I get to get you out of those clothes," her lover replied, her voice low and brimming with lust.

Anastasia felt a lopsided grin come onto her face at the response. "Your wish is my command, my love." She lifted her lover up and carried her over to the bed, hobbling on her knees across the mattress to the center of the bed once she reached it. She laid Kasumi down and remained over her as their lips met once more in a splendorous kiss.

Her thief's hands trailed down her torso until they found the knot of her sweater sleeves which she quickly untied and tossed away. It was as Kasumi began sitting up, in turn forcing the redhead to sit up as well, that Shepard's nose began to pick a smell she was unfamiliar with.

It wasn't anything on her lover or herself and it certainly wasn't the Ginger Peach candle they usually lit on romantic nights. It…didn't belong in the house and was beginning to pull Ana out of the moment, or at least it did until Kasumi's expert fingers slipped under her flowy red shirt and began exploring her skin.

Every area she touched set her the nerves ablaze as she traveled along the canvas she needed no map to traverse. No matter how many times she traveled the roads of her body, the effect her touch had on the redheaded woman never dulled.

It was Ana's turn to hold onto her lover as Kasumi's moist tongue and warm lips worked their magic down her neck, across her collarbone and onto her upper chest as her hands continued up her torso, but again the strange smell managed to breach her senses.

This wasn't the time to lose focus. This was the time to lose herself in the moment at hand and let her thief lead for a little while before she laid her back and made love to her. She easily forced the smell from her mind with that thought and placed a kiss on the top of her thief's head. Kasumi looked up at her with a smile and met her lips again in a deep kiss. Their tongues met in a splendid dance while the thief began to fondle Ana's breasts.

Arousal was high in both women. They both equally wanted to lay the other down and witness them become overcome by waves and waves of titillating pleasure, yet they also wanted to ride those waves themselves. Ana would not lose herself completely though, she would sate Kasumi's desires over and over again before she allowed herself to feel those waves crash through her body.

Yet again a waft of the strange smell penetrated through her senses before she could act. _What the hell is that smell?_ It was beginning to frustrate her with how distracting it was. Why did she feel like she had forgotten something? She broke off the kiss and furrowed her brow. "Do you smell that?" she asked her lover.

Kasumi raised her eyebrow in confusion. "Smell wha—" she scrunched up her nose as the smell hit her. "I do now. It smells like something burning."

 _Something burning?_ The thought hit the retired Commander like a Thanix Cannon hitting a starship. "Oh shit!" She jumped out of the bed and rushed to the kitchen with the snowball on her hat bouncing with each running step she took. The distance to the kitchen wasn't far, but with each advancing stride the smell of burning cookies consumed her nostrils.

Shepard entered the kitchen and hastily put on her holiday decorated oven mittens. The right had a Christmas tree on it while the left had a snowman, she had thought they were cute but now they were on a salvage operation to save what cookie lives they could and prevent the house from burning down. She was a little sorry for sending Frosty and a flammable tree into the fire, but this mission was of great importance damn it.

This was their chance to save Christmas cookies.

Ana opened the oven to receive a face full of heat and smoke but she didn't let that stop her. She dove in with Frosty and the old fir on her hands to grab the pan of cookies. "Kasumi, I hate to say this, but could you open the windows. We're going to have to air this smoke out," she called to her lover as she set the pan on the oven to examine them.

"Got it!" Kasumi called back.

The N7 scanned over all of the cookies then heaved a defeated sigh.

There were no survivors.

 _I can't believe I forgot about the cookies. Granted I was distracted in all the best ways, but I really feel bad about these cookies._ Ana sighed again and grabbed a spatula to start scrapping up the cookies. She dumped them into a full trash bag and tied it up as the temperature in the house began to drop with a cool breeze. The retired N7 made a very hasty trip to the garbage can and back, regretting it and cursing herself the entire way for not getting properly dressed before doing so.

She returned into the house and made her way back into the kitchen where her second tray of cookies still sat. _It's going to be awhile before we can cook those in there if we don't want them to taste like smoke._ Ana grabbed the pan and stuck it into the fridge. As the doors closed she shivered involuntarily and rubbed her cold arms. _I really should have grabbed a sweater before going out there._

"All of them got burned?" Kasumi asked from behind her.

"Yeah, no survivors," Shepard responded grimly. Kasumi snorted in amusement and then fell into full blown laughter at her words. "Hey! Don't laugh! I worked really hard on them," she argued as she turned around.

To her surprise Kasumi had her hat back on, but was still very much naked from her waist up. "Oh, Ana," the thief shook her head in mirth, "you are absolutely the most adorable woman I know."

Anastasia would have argued the point about being _adorable_ if she wasn't struggling to keep her eyes from falling south of Kasumi's neckline. Her thief was keenly aware of the struggle and only made it harder by leaning onto her forearms on the island separating them. The word _Naughty_ sewed into her hat was only being proven right at this point.

"We'll bake more, Ana. We have time, especially since we have to wait for the smoke to clear." She looked over in the direction of a cracked open window. "It's going to get cold in the meantime. I suppose we'll have to figure out some way to stay warm until then." A mischievous smile pulled onto her face as she turned her eyes back to the redhead. "Any ideas, my adorable Commander?"

Shepard moved swiftly around the island and picked her endearing thief up bridal style. "Oh, I've got one an idea, my naughty elf."

"Hey, you're the one who left me half-naked on a bed!"

"To stop a fire from starting."

"Don't play innocent with me. You had me pinned against a doorframe and were working wonders with your honey tongue. _You_ are the naughty elf."

Okay, those were all valid points and she was the one who owned all of the blame for her thief's current state of arousal. But to be fair she hadn't meant to leave her there on the bed half-naked alone with her arousal just as she hadn't meant to burn the cookies.

Her point had been made and it made Ana smirk as a new line of thought came to mind. She met her lover's eyes, who wore a small pout, as she reentered their bedroom. "Then I guess I'll have to show you how naughty I am," she halted at the edge of the bed and leaned in close to her lover's ear as she dropped her voice to a seductive whisper, "and remind you of how talented this honey tongue can be."

Pink dusted the thief's pale cheeks as Anastasia hobbled across the bed once more and laid her down onto her back. She intertwined their hands and pinned Kasumi's against the bed then leaned down to her waist. Ana began drawing the tip of her tongue across her skin from her waist all the way up the center off her body until she reached her chin.

Kasumi squirmed under her strength making Ana instinctively lighten her grip and begin to pull back out of fear that she was hurting her or doing something she did not want. What stopped her from completely removing herself was the true motive behind the squirming. Her thief's left leg had been trapped but the moment she got it free she locked her legs around the redhead's body and pulled her back in.

"Is that it?" she teased, locking her fingers with Ana's. She was smiling widely at the sky blue eyed woman while her belly and breasts were beginning to flush pink. "I know you can do better than that and I'm not letting you go anywhere until you do."

Anastasia smiled down at her and gave her hands and affectionate squeeze. "As you command, my love."

Many Hours Later

Midnight hour was nearly upon Montreal. All across Earth kids were tucked away in their beds dreaming of elves, reindeer and a jolly old man who was on his late night trip to deliver a giant bag of gifts to their trees. There were certainly some tossing and turning in excitement but the threat of being naughty taking away their gifts kept them fighting to get to sleep.

New snow was falling in Montreal as a bright full moon casted brilliant light down onto the snow below. Stars dotted the sky as scarce clouds floated on their paths across the night sky, hiding the man in red on his trip across the globe.

In the cozy little home by the lake, Kasumi and Anastasia cuddled together under a few blankets on their deep-seated couch as they watched Christmas vids. Fresh logs were crackling in their fireplace as Kasumi listened intently to her lover's heartbeat under her right ear and half listened to the vid with her left. Her eyes were barely cracked open as the heartbeat put her in a trance somewhere between semi-consciousness and sleep.

Ana laid against a pillow tucked in the armrest with her left hand outside of the blanket wrapped around the master thief and her chin resting on Kasumi's head as she breathed evenly. They were dressed in long sleeve underwear tops and panties as they laid in bliss with their bare legs tangled up together.

The house had stopped smelling of smoke an hour or so after they had opened it up, though they hadn't closed the house down for a few hours after it. When they finally left the comfort of their bed and were done making love, the two lovers baked the second batch of cookies together and had shared a candle lit dinner.

A single red rose in a vase was placed on the table as they sat next to one another so they could touch and kiss whenever they felt the need to. Their entre consisted of sugar cookies, gingerbread men they had cooked the day before, and a Christmas pumpkin pie with whip cream and ice cream.

 _It was so romantic,_ Kasumi thought with a smile, _and she wore a dress for it. It ended up on the floor again, but it was totally worth it._ Her Shep disliked dresses with a passion, but the thief loved how amazing she looked in them…admittedly, she liked to get her out of them as well.

Ana wasn't alone in wearing a dress though, Kasumi had worn one as well and it too ended up discarded on the floor next to their bed. _It's probably why she didn't offer much of a fight when I pulled them both out._ It was only fair if she was going to force the sky blue eyed redhead to wear a dress that she would wear one as well this time. Being called a goddess from a woman who Kasumi considered to be a real goddess was an added bonus of the endeavor.

After their sugar sweet dinner and second session of sweet love making, they had started watching the marathon of cute Christmas vids together. Their house was dark save for the colorful low light of their garland around the house, their brilliant Christmas tree and the light of their vid screen. Their hearts and minds were at ease and neither had any intention of leaving the warmth of their cuddle.

It was a perfect end to their first Christmas Eve.

"Kasumi?" Shepard broke their comfortable silence in a whisper.

"Yes, my beautiful Ana."

"Why don't you go open up one gift? It's Christmas Eve after all and I already got my gift from you through Anderson."

Kasumi smiled softly and nuzzled into her lover. It hadn't taken much convincing to get Anderson on her side for a holiday surprise. The struggle they had was ensuring everyone else Shepard was in contact with in the Alliance kept it secret. In truth her retirement hadn't been fully settled until recently, but keeping it secret once it was for a few weeks had been difficult.

She wanted to tell her Ana so badly that she no longer had to worry about her retirement. She wanted to tell her that she was retired and they could go chase their dreams instead of watching her beat herself up about it taking so long. But she hung in to the end and Anderson's call had been a huge weight off of both of their shoulders.

Now they could follow their hearts and one day turn their dreams into a glorious reality. That wasn't tonight though, plotting their course could wait until later in the day tomorrow. "And leave you? I think not," she responded cheekily.

A kiss was planted on top of her head. "Come on, it's only fair you get to open a gift if I do."

The thief sat up a little but with zero intention of getting out from under the blankets. She missed the heartbeat in her ear, but she would have it again after she convinced her Shep it was unneeded. "I already received my gift, Ana."

Anastasia tilted her head in question. "I don't remember you opening a gift. You didn't open it without me knowing, did you? You know the big man in red gives coal to naughty women."

"Then you're going to get a bunch of coal tonight for your actions."

A playful grin tugged onto Ana's face. "I don't know. The way you reacted, I think I was pretty damn good."

Kasumi began blushing a deep red in the dark although that did little to hide it from Ana judging on the laugh she gave. _I have to recover._ She was on the ropes in their flirt battle today and if she didn't recover her footing now, she'd never get it back. "At least…I didn't burn Christmas cookie," she tried lamely.

Even if her delivery wasn't all that great, her retort definitely turned the tables. Shepard's grin fell as her laugh died out and turned into a whine. "Hey. That was low."

"Those poor cookies had families, Shep," she guilt tripped the redhead with a smile on her face.

"Don't make me feel worse than I already do about the cookies, please."

Kasumi gave her a peck on the lips. "Okay, fine. But only because you asked so nicely." _Victory achieved._ It had been a close call, but at least they would be even for the night. All she had to do now was get the conversation back on course. "I didn't open any of the gifts under the tree without you knowing."

"Then what gift did you receive?"

Kasumi smiled lovingly at her. "You."

Her lover's lips quirked up in a smile but her eyes began to well with tears. "That's…that's not playing fair, Kasumi," Shepard's voice cracked as she spoke.

"I'm not teasing you, Ana," she said seriously yet softly. "Having you here, holding me…in love with me…you are the best gift I could ask for."

"As are you, my love." Kasumi leaned in and captured her lips in a short but passionate kiss. When they parted, she resumed her previous position but brought her left arm out from under the covers and slipped it under Ana's. The redhead laced her fingers with Kasumi's and gave her another kiss on the top of her head. "Merry Christmas, Kasumi."

"Merii kurisumasu, Ana."

Sleep would soon take them and in the morning they would wake up together with gifts to open, more cookies to eat, and dreams to chase.


	7. Chapter 7

The Greatest Gift of All

Anastasia Shepard entered the hall leading to her Citadel apartment with two large handfuls of grocery bags that were full of an assortment of different ingredients. _I really should have taken James with me for an extra set of hands._ She readjusted her arms to ease the rising soreness but was less successful in the endeavor, _and possibly Garrus too._

When she had received the two separate lists from James and Kasumi for the ingredients needed for their meals, she really hadn't anticipated it to really be _this_ much. What the redhead had forgotten to take into account was the fact they had to feed her entire squad plus their children, which included more than ten humans, four Asari, two Turian's, two Quarian's, two Krogan's, and one Prothean. _Plus a partridge in a pear tree._

If she wasn't so stubborn she would have taken multiple trips back to the skycar, but Shepard and stubbornness went together like Santa Claus and magical reindeer. _It isn't so bad. I'm almost there,_ Shepard thought positively.

Despite her growing aches, she was in a wonderful mood. Today was the eve of Christmas and she would be celebrating it with her gorgeous lover, her amazing four children, and the rest of her squad.

For Ana it was a giant family reunion. Everyone had been able to make it to the reunion and most planned to stay around on the Citadel until the New Year. A few of her friends, like Jacob, Samara and Wrex, wouldn't be able to stay the entire week due to their family or other responsibilities, but having them around even if only for a day was enough for the retired Commander.

Part of her missed the old days when she was around them constantly. Even though it was extremely stressful due to the Reapers and the war, the Normandy team from her days chasing Saren to the end of the war had become her family.

Ten years had passed since the end of the Reaper War and some of her friends had settled down to start a family of their own, like Garrus and Tali, or were in the process of it, like Jack and Miranda. Others like James, Kaiden, Samantha, Cortez, Donnelly, and Gabby still served in the Alliance on the Normandy with Kaiden now serving as the captain of the beloved vessel.

Nowadays she did her best to maintain contact with all of her friends despite the distance between them. Each year they did their best to all come together at least once but it wasn't always easy with their responsibilities as parents or as soldiers.

The pang for the old days was eased tremendously every time she looked at her children. Seeing their smiles, hearing their laughter, witnessing their growth day by day, it brightened her life beyond the brightest of suns. Zenia, Denia, Xandria, Miyako and Kasumi were the lights of her life burning away all the darkness of the past and replacing it with the love of family she had never thought she'd experience after losing hers so many years ago.

 _I hope they haven't been causing too much trouble in the kitchen,_ Shepard thought as she neared the door. She had left her little ones in charge over the kitchen where James and Kasumi were awaiting her return, but she hadn't expected to be gone as long as she was. Traffic had been heavy and loading everything up into the skycar as well as taking it all and making this walk had taken time.

 _I suppose I shouldn't really worry about them. They can be cute little tricksters, but they are always well-behaved. I should be more worried about Kasumi and James vying for control over the kitchen in my absence._ The pair hadn't had an issue with sharing the kitchen, but when it came to cooking their special meals they got a little defensive. Asking to help was like insinuating they couldn't cook, and that was suicide mission in of itself.

 _I hope Kasumi hasn't stolen his armor and painted it to look like a candy cane while I was gone._ As humorous as it would be to see Vega in striped red and white or, more likely, pink and white, she didn't want to put James in that position. _I'd feel bad about it, I'd laugh the red right out of my hair, but I'd feel bad about it later._

She entered her apartment and let out a content sigh at the sights sounds that greeted her. The sounds of bantering friends and laughter met her ears making her feel right at home as faint Christmas music breathed holiday spirit into the apartment. Christmas decorations lined the apartment all across both floors. Lighted garland covered in white-gold baubles and bows lined the balcony and stairwell while a row of stockings hung above the holographic fireplace waiting for goodies to be dropped into them.

The living room table and couches had been moved further away from the holographic fireplace to accommodate for all the gifts that would be under the big green faux tree adorned from top to bottom and all the way around with numerous designed baubles and other Christmas themed ornaments.

It still lacked a tree-topper but had otherwise been completed by her little ones prior to everyone showing up, much like the rest of the decorations around the apartment. Sure they had a little guidance from their parents and help for the higher up areas, but the kids were the ones to pick out the ornaments and places to put them.

Ana and Kasumi had both reveled in helping their four adorable daughters decorate the apartment. They were each bubbling over with enthusiasm for the holiday and were doing what they could to spread good cheer. If that meant being ultra-cute when asking others to wear Santa hats or being extra cuddly to make the hearts of all their cuddle victims grow four sizes bigger than they were prepared to do it.

"Mommy!" two little girls chorused as they latched onto Shepard's leg and waist.

Shepard gave a jovial laugh as she struggled to maintain her balance. "Zenia, Xandria! Did you miss me?"

Her little Asari and mirror image gave nods of confirmation. "Yep! We've been working really hard to keep Uncle James and Mama on their bestest behavior," Xandria told her.

She smiled down at her two daughters holding onto her lower half as they looked up at her. They both had Santa hats on but wore different outfits. Zenia was wearing a rose red tank top paired with a black skirt and leggings while her human sister wore an emerald t-shirt and blackish blue shorts.

Ana wanted to scoop them up in her arms and shower them with kisses and tickles until they were giggling madly for their cuteness. Unfortunately her hands were full and she was a little worried about the current state of the kitchen. "Have James and Mama been misbehaving?"

"They were debating who would cook first when you got back. We put them on a timeout until you got back," Zenia answered.

Ana snorted in amusement at the thought of her four daughters putting Kasumi and James on a timeout. _That had to be quite the sight, especially with James involved._ "How did that work?"

"Uncle James said we were too small to do that, so I put Xandria on my shoulders and Denia put Miyako on hers to become bigger."

 _Ah, good, their using their teamwork skills to outsmart adults. I'm glad they are taking my lessons on teamwork seriously._ "And?" Shepard asked the pair to continue with a grin pulling onto her face. This was starting to get good and she couldn't wait to figure out how it worked out and see the results for herself.

"We laid down the law like you told us to," Zenia finished. "Uncle James is thinking about his choice of words now."

The redhead barked out a laugh she had been trying to hold in. _Oh James, I don't think I can ever let you live this down._ She set the bags down onto the floor so she could kneel down and embrace her daughters. "Thank you for keeping them in line while I was gone, little ones." _And for giving me banter ammunition for years to come._ "Let's go free Mama and James of their timeouts. It is Christmas Eve after all."

"Yeah! They can earn their way off the naughty list by cooking really good food!" Xandria said enthusiastically.

"Exactly," Ana nodded in agreement, grinning at her little redhead.

She began grabbing the large handfuls of groceries only for her daughters to start trying to pick up the heavier ones. Their cheeks puffed out in effort as they lifted the bags off the ground and struggled to keep them up. "Heavy," Xandria said with strain.

"Yeah," her sister followed.

Ana released the bags already in her hands and placed her hands on her daughters, gently guiding their hands to place the bags back down. Their faces became relieved with the weight no longer in their hands. "You're really strong, Mommy," Zenia said.

"Perhaps, but you two will be as strong as me someday," she said, giving the pair encouraging smiles. "If you two really want to help, take these bags," the redhead woman lifted up six extremely light bags and handed them to her daughters, "they aren't as heavy but it'll definitely help me a lot." The duo took them gladly and waited for their mother to get the rest of the bags in her grips again to start their short walk to the kitchen.

Shepard had to stifle her laugh when they entered it due in no small part to finding Miyako still very much on the shoulders of her sister with her arms crossed and her chest puffed out as she stared up at James. Even on the shoulders of Denia she wasn't tall enough to actually be eye to eye with the burly soldier, but that didn't make her back down from their staring contest in the slightest.

It was a little hard to take Miyako seriously when she was wearing a white shirt with a big candy cane on the front and red skirt with candy cane striped leggings. James was managing to do so though as he kept his arms crossed over his tree trunk sized chest. Denia was right there with them in keeping up her stare as she stood her ground in a pink long sleeve and black shorts.

Sitting at the counter watching on in clear amusement were Steve and Joker. They were all in their Alliance casuals while the pair wore looks that transmitted the same thoughts Ana had: _James is never living this down._

Next to the oven was Kasumi in her hooded purple tank top with the hood up, a Santa hat on top of it, N7 tags around her neck and knee-length black shorts. Her arms were crossed under her bosom as she wore a playful pout. As Ana entered the room the two lover's eyes met turning the pout into a smile and the redhead's smile into a grin.

 _Have your hands full, love?_ Ana's eyes asked silently in mirth.

 _In all the best ways._

"I'm back. Has everyone been behaving?" Anastasia asked knowingly.

"Mommy's back!" Miyako cheered.

Denia turned around with a smile and rushed over to her returning parent. Shepard had just enough time to lift the groceries up and set them on the counter before her daughters embraced her waist and upper body. The redhead picked Miyako up off Denia's shoulders, grinning at the pair as she knelt down and wrapped Denia up in a hug. Her other two daughters joined in the hug after going up on their tiptoes to put their bags on the counter top.

Ana gave them all a round of kisses and a few tickles eliciting giggles out of them. _We weren't apart for more than a few hours, but I missed you four._ She hated being apart from her little ones and her lover, especially all at the same time. _I can't imagine how terrible it would be if I was away for a few days. I doubt I'd be able to sleep…I doubt any of us would be able to._

"Shepard, we need to talk," James said, breaking her from her thoughts.

"True, we do." She gave her children one more kiss each then stood up. The look James gave her was begging for her to take his side just this once. If the situation didn't involve her little ones putting them on timeouts she may have done it, but this was too good to pass up. "I heard you two were being very bad while I was gone. I was really hoping you two would behave while I was gone so my little ones didn't have to lay down any law, but I see I expected too much. I promise your punishments will be quick and severe."

Steve and Joker covered their mouths as they tried to hold back their laughter at how serious Ana was pretending to be. James looked like he was struggling to keep his jaw from dropping off its hinges in disbelief and it was almost too much for the retired N7 to continue. _I can't break yet. I've barely gotten started._ She steeled herself with a calm even breath and kept her smile from forming and her laugh from bubbling out.

"He started it!" Kasumi declared as she pointed at him.

"What?!" The muscular soldier was taken off guard by the declaration of her lover. Shepard bit the inside of her lip to prevent herself from losing all of her steeled will. _Hold it together! Don't you dare break into laughter!_ Steve, Joker and her daughters were barely containing themselves and it was making it that much harder not to laugh with them.

"Okay," Ana broke in before James could, "regardless of who started it, you were both put on timeouts. It's not in my power to release you from it, but I will decide who cooks first and end this debate once and for all." _Take charge of the conversation,_ she coached herself, _keep focused on the objective and don't let yourself break._ She turned to Kasumi. "Love, your sponge cake will go first. It will take the longest to bake for our serving size and it will give you time to decorate it while James works on dinner."

The retired N7 turned to the Alliance marine and took on her _mom_ tone. "James, have you behaved while on your timeout."

"Seriously, Lola? Are we really going there?"

"Do I need to put you on an indefinite timeout?"

Vega let out a sigh of defeat. "No. I behaved." He sent a scathing glare at Joker who released a laugh he was unable to hold back.

"Good." She turned to her lover. "Love, have you behaved on your timeout."

"Of course."

"No she didn't!" Denia tattled, giggling as she did. Kasumi mocked a gasp then brought her finger to her lips like she was telling her daughter to keep a secret. "Every time we tried to stay serious, she would start tickling us. It wasn't very fair."

Her three sisters confirmed it with cheers of 'yeah she did' and 'she's right, it wasn't fair' in turn making Shepard smile at her thief. _Cheater._

 _Can you blame me? It was cute and fun._

Shepard couldn't blame her and undoubtedly would have done the same in her shoes. "I see. Little ones, was James honest?"

"Yes, Miyako was just playing when you got back," Denia answered.

"Have fun, little shadow?"

"Mmhm."

Ana turned her eyes back to her friend. "In that case, little ones I think it's time to let him off his timeout." James brightened at the news. "Only if he puts a Santa hat on and promises to make the best Huevos Rancheros you four have ever tasted. Agreed?" she asked to her daughters. They cheered in agreement. "You heard the little ladies, James."

James smiled and put on the Santa hat sitting on the counter next to him. "How can I say no to that promise? I promise to make the greatest Vega Special you four have ever tasted." Again her four daughters let out cheers of excitement and ran over to the man to hug his legs and waist. James laughed heartily and began assaulting the girls with tickles. "Ha! You four are in trouble now!"

"You can't say no to those cute faces. It's impossible," Cortez said, smiling at the group.

"Yeah, if you do you'll wake up with pink armor," Joker responded.

"And don't you forget it," Kasumi teased the pilot.

"Just remember that when you find one of them in my lap flying the Normandy or with Steve flying the shuttle."

If Shepard didn't trust Joker and Steve she may have paled at the thought of them letting one or all of her daughters sit in their laps to fly the ship or shuttle. She didn't though. They were the best pilots she had ever known and with EDI on the Normandy it was doubtful if the situation ever did arise that anything bad would come of it.

Granted if it did happen she knew she would still worry. _In the meantime, I still have one last punishment to dole out._ She moved around the island in the kitchen and behind her thief who had started to unpack the groceries. "Don't think I forgot about you, my love." Ana rested her hands on her lover's hips and closed the distance between them.

Kasumi leaned back into her and turned her head to look at her. "And what _punishment_ awaits me, Ana?" she asked in a seductive whisper.

 _You asked for it._ Anastasia smiled at her and began leaning in for a kiss. As Kasumi lowered her guard, the redhead quickly slipped her hands under her tank top and began attacking her sides with tickles. Her thief yelped in surprise then giggled as she tried to squirm out of her grip. Unfortunately for her the redhead had better leverage and a rock climbers grip on her.

" _Ana_!" the thief chided between giggles.

"Do you promise to bake the best cake ever?"

"Yes!"

"And to let our daughter's taste test icing for you?"

"Ye- yes!" Ana relented in her tickles to let her thief regain the breath she had lost through giggling and in her efforts to escape the torture. "You are as cruel as you are beautiful," Kasumi said, panting lightly with a smile on her face.

"And don't you forget it," Ana quipped as a smirk pulled onto her face. She gave Kasumi a peck on the cheek then moved to her side. "Here, I'll help you get all of these groceries out and organized."

The pair began working while making small talk with each other as well as with Joker, Steve and James, the latter of which helped them in getting his supplies organized. Their four daughters ran off to go play only after giving their returning parent a Santa hat to wear with her zipped up N7 hoodie and navy blue jeans.

When they finished getting everything ready, Ana left the kitchen to give her lover the space she needed to bake four sponge cakes, one for their Turian's and Quarian's, two really big ones for Wrex and Grunt, and another large one to feed everyone else.

It was the same for the food James would end up cooking, hence the large and heavy bags of ingredients she had to pick up. Vega's Huevos Rancheros, or the Vega Special as he liked to call it, was a legendary meal among the Normandy team. Eating rations and the like made his flavorful taste bud blasting home cooked meal the greatest food in all of existence.

He didn't just make it taste good though, he made it look good too. For all the crap that Shepard gave the man she would give him credit for going the extra mile on the presentation of his food. With a beautiful sight of the warm meal, plus the glorious smell that could make anyone drool, it was hard to imagine there was something else out there that was better.

 _I dare say Kasumi's sponge cake is even better, but that may because of my weakness for sweets._ On the first Christmas they shared with Zenia and Denia she had revealed her ability to cook the greatest cake in the entire galaxy. The reason the retired redhead had removed herself from the kitchen was because she knew Kasumi needed no help whatsoever in baking her cake.

She was a master chef when it came to baking her special sponge cake and any offered help would only slow her down. It was like she was in dance while she was baking. She moved around smoothly and hit every maneuver with elegance and precision, and anyone who tried to help would end up stepping on her toes.

Watching her move around the kitchen was a gift in of itself for the redhead, but the cake was the real reward. She styled it differently for each Christmas or birthday, but the end result was always the same: a beautifully designed cake with a taste that made every other sweet taste duller than a slice of plain bread.

 _Sometimes I think I should have just had Kasumi bake one of her cakes for all the leaders of the galaxy during the war. There's no way they would have been able to resist our pleas then._ The cake was amazing, but even Shepard knew her thought was an exaggeration. _They were all too stubborn, too stupid, too embroiled in bad blood, hiding secrets or all four put together. I bet we could keep peace just using her cakes nowadays though._

Anastasia was looking forward to seeing what kind of design this newest cake would have. She mostly couldn't wait to taste it. While she waited for the cake to be done she went around the apartment checking in on everyone. They were all lounging around taking in the nostalgia of everyone getting together again or questioning the holiday they were unfamiliar with when the kids were far out of ear shot, like Garrus had.

 _"So we're letting an old man in a red suit break into the apartment to deliver gifts to our children? And parents all over Earth, the Citadel and the rest of the galaxy don't see any problem with letting some stranger into their homes for the promise of gifts?"_

 _"He's not going to steal your children, Garrus,"_ Shepard had teased her friend.

 _"I know that. The concept is just strange. Why not just let your children know you're the one who gave them the really nice gifts instead of making them believe someone else got it for them? They might think you didn't care."_

 _"I know. I considered that, but it's the spirit of the holiday. I know it doesn't make complete sense, but you know you love the excitement they exhibit for it."_

 _"True. But are you sure we don't have to worry about a break in? If you want I'll set up a perimeter so our kids are safe."_

 _"And you want to tell the kids we're preparing to_ _ **prevent**_ _Santa from coming?"_ Tali had questioned her lover with a smile in her voice.

 _"…good point."_

Getting everyone to go along with the holiday prior to their arrival had been a bit difficult, especially with Javik. The Prothean couldn't understand the "primitive" holiday or the need to lie to their children about who gave them gifts. It had taken some coaxing to make him promise not to tell the truth to the kids, but in the end he agreed.

It had become a bit of a game for her kids to put a Santa hat on him, and thus far they were unsuccessful. They were still trying though and having fun in the process of doing so. At the same time Ana was almost certain Javik was actually playing along to make them earn getting the hat on his head for his own bit of fun.

 _I wouldn't put it past him if he considers it entertaining. He's always had a strange sense of humor by our standards and he hasn't asked me to make them stop or showed anger towards them._ _I'd never say it in front of him, but I think he has a bit of a soft side for the girls._

Her girls called him "Grandpa Javik" so maybe that had softened the old warrior up a little. She would never know because she would never ask him out of the fear he would become a bit harsher towards them. Anastasia was content to watch on from a distance as he interacted with her little ones.

As she journeyed around the apartment and interacted with everyone she took note that some were still missing, Grunt, Kaiden and Zaeed to be specific. She knew her fellow Spectre had some business to settle before he could relax but had no idea what the other two were doing. The retired N7 knew they were on the Citadel and were going to arrive eventually, she just didn't know where they were or when they would show up.

 _Zaeed is probably playing cards down in the Wards…unless he still has his addiction for the Claw machine._ Shepard had considered buying him his own for Christmas, but she relented just in case it would cause it to become a real addiction. That and because she didn't want him to smash it when or if he lost.

Grunt was the one who caused her the most worry, though. Yes the C-Sec incident had only happened once, but she always worried about her tank-bred Krogan when he was out on his own. _I haven't got a call yet regarding him getting in trouble. That has to be a good sign, right?_ Shepard shrugged the thought off, _I'm sure he's just kicking simulated ass in the Combat Arena…I hope._

As time passed she eventually came upon Jack and Miranda sitting on the love seat in the quiet sanctuary of the second floor away from prying eyes. The tattooed biotic had her hair out of its ponytail as she laid her head in the lap of the former Cerberus Operative. Her hands were resting on her stomach as she kept her eyes shut in relaxation. Jack's usual black jacket was folded on the nearby table leaving her in a grey loose tank top and beige pants.

Miranda, who was running one of her hands through her lover's black hair, wore a white V-neck and black jeans. Her eyes portrayed the bliss she was swimming in as she spent this quiet time with her pregnant lover. She was resting her other hand on top of Jack's, tracing the tattoos on her hands with surgical precision.

It was still a bit strange to see them like this even ten years later, but it wasn't a bad strange. _I'm happy they made peace with each other and found it in being with each other,_ Ana thought. _I had never expected it. I only ever thought it was a funny way to get them riled up. Then again I don't think even they expected it. All I know is that I'm happy they found some happiness. They deserve it after all the things they went through in their lives._

Not wishing to disturb them long but wanting to ensure they didn't need anything, Ana made her presence known. "Hey, just checking in on everyone. Everything okay?"

"Well so far no one has fallen into a frozen lake so I'd say everything is going well," Miranda jabbed lightheartedly. Jack, awoken from her relaxation, barked a laugh as Shepard shook her head. _I'm never living that down. At least it wasn't a fish tank joke._ "And no fish tanks have been hit with terrible casualties by a certain Commander falling through them, so I think you're doing fairly well this year, Shepard."

 _Or not..._ The retired N7 sighed mentally while Jack snickered, _it's not like I tried to fall into the lake or through the fish tank. My weight was too much for the ice or the crack weakened it and those mercenaries shot the floor out from under me. I can't be blamed entirely for that._

"Very funny, Miri. I hope you enjoy your box of coal this year," the redhead retorted.

"Oh I will," she said, chuckling lightly at Shepard's expense.

"I'm okay, Shepard," Jack told her.

"I actually need to excuse myself for a moment. Could you keep Jack company?" Miranda asked.

"Sure."

The tattooed biotic opened her eyes and stared up at her raven-haired lover. "I'm not going to suddenly pop while you're gone, Cheerleader. I'm barely ten weeks pregnant," she scolded tiredly.

"Humor me."

Jack rolled her eyes and began to sit up to allow Miranda to stand and excuse herself from the room. Her lover laid back down and rested her arm over her forearm. "She's a real mother hen, Shepard. Was Kasumi like this when you were pregnant?"

Ana chuckled lightly and strode over to the couch, sitting down on the arm of it. Being pregnant and watching over her pregnant lover had definitely given her some interesting experiences to say the least. "Yeah, but I was probably even more of a mother hen than she was when she was pregnant." Probably was also a lie, she knew she was even if Kasumi never would agree to it. "We just want what's best for who we love and the child they bear."

"Yeah, I know. She can be a real pain in the ass though."

"But you love her."

"Yeah. She may be a pain in the ass, but she's my pain in the ass." _And to think you two used to want to smear the walls with each other,_ Shepard thought, smiling as she did. "Hey, what's with the smile?"

The retired N7 chuckled and waved her off. Jack had mellowed out a lot, but she wasn't going to ruin the woman's tranquility with her nostalgia. "Nothing, don't worry about it. How do you feel about all of this? Excited?"

"Try scared shitless." _And there goes that plan._ Jack stared up at the ceiling in silence for a few moments before speaking again. "Be honest with me, Shepard, am I really mother material? Look at me, look at what I've done."

"Honestly? Yeah, you are." Jack met her eyes with surprise at her confident answer. "I know how you feel, trust me, I've been there with Xandria and the twins before her. I wasn't sure I'd be any good as a parent. Raising kids was foreign ground for someone whose specialty was kicking ass and shouting down politicians. I was afraid I'd fail them or that they'd hate me."

She had Jack's undivided attention now. The uncertainty she was going through and fears she had were things she too had felt. Kasumi had gone through it too with a little less fear over being a good parent and more fears on if everything with the pregnancy would go well.

 _By the time Miyako came along, we had a better grasp on parenting than when we first started with the twins and Xandria. Kasumi feared the possibility of a stillbirth more than anything else…and the possibility that she'd die while she gave birth._

" _If I don't make it—"_

" _You're not going to die. Don't you dare even think like anything less than that, my love. You're going to give birth to a beautiful baby boy or girl and you're going to live to see them grow up. Understood?" Shepard's voice was stern and commanded to be heard._

 _Kasumi reached to her and held her hand. "I love you, Anastasia Shepard. Forever. Promise me you'll continue to live and raise our kids to be just as amazing as you are…and maybe as mischievous as me."_

" _Kasumi—"_

" _Promise me."_

 _Ana clutched her hand and squeezed her eyes shut tightly to stave off her tears. "I…I promise…" She felt so utterly helpless and she hated it so much. Ana couldn't stand the thought of two souls going in and only one coming out, the thought alone made it feel like someone was squeezing her heart in their hand as they prepared to pop it. She didn't want this wondrous moment of having their final child be marked by the death of the woman she loved more than her own life. That…that was a burden she didn't want to bear. "Remember when we promised each other that we'd never let the other know what life without them in it was like?"_

" _Of course."_

" _It's not just us anymore…it's our girls too and this new one. You can't…you won't let us know what life without you is like. Promise me that, promise me that you won't leave."_

" _I promise."_

Ana shook off the memories. It had been a troubling time and one she was glad had turned out for the best, but right now she needed to hone in on helping Jack out. Having someone they could talk to and ease their worries because they had gone through it before them was a luxury she hadn't had, but it was one she could grant for her friends.

"Jack, you've grown beyond your past. Look at what you've done since the war. You continually help to teach kids at Grissom Academy and they adore you. Zenia, Denia, Xandria and Miyako all love you and Miranda dearly. You two have been around them since we adopted and gave birth to them and you are so gentle and loving to them. You'll be the same way with your own child, trust me."

Jack glanced away at the evidence of her motherly material. "…I'm just worried…my kid will hate me or something. I don't want to screw this up or have them grow up like I did because I wasn't a good enough parent like you are."

"They won't hate you. Something I've learned from watching my little ones growing up is this: no child is born with hate in their hearts. Hate is taught, but that's not something you'll have to worry about because your child will know the love of two people who want the very best for them. Sure you may make mistakes, but so did I. You've got a great maternal instinct Jack, just trust in yourself and the love you share with Miri."

"Thank you, Shepard."

"Anytime. If you ever need help or are feeling psyched out, don't be afraid to call. We'll help to the best of our abilities."

Jack gave a thankful nod. She would take her up on the offer if she ever needed to and Shepard would be there to follow through with her promise. It was the least she could do to help her friend through an event that could be as thrilling as it was terrifying depending on the day. Miranda returned not long after and resumed her previous position with Ana leaving the couch and the upstairs area to give the pair the alone time they had sought out.

"Ow! Hey!" Shepard paused at the kitchen at the yelp of pain from James. She peered into the room with a quizzical look on her face and found the muscular soldier rubbing his hand as Kasumi was retracting her spatula.

"I don't dip my fingers in your Huevos Rancheros when you cook, don't dip your fingers in my icing when I'm baking," she scolded.

"You just let them have a taste!" James argued, pointing to the six children who were licking their fingers or finishing up the tube given to them in the case of Tali's son.

"Of course I did. They're too adorable to deny and I _did_ promise to let them taste test it," she retorted as she turned back around to the oven to check on her baking cake. With her back turned James began sneakily attempting to get the icing again. Shepard merely shook her head at him to try to stop him, but he was on a mission and wouldn't be warded off.

 _Thwack!_

"Ow!" James retracted his hand and stared perplexed at the back of the woman who had managed to hit him without looking. The kids were snickering at his poor luck and not being all that subtle about it either. "How did you even know?"

"I see everything, James."

 _Thawck!_

"Ow!"

"You can have a piece of cake when everyone else is able to. No exceptions, unless you're adorable."

"Come on, not even a little taste?"

A smile pulled onto Ana's face at the begging coming from Vega. She had been in his shoes before and it hadn't in success, not even puppy dog eyes got Kasumi to break and she usually cracked under cuteness. _I should probably try to stop him now before he ends up with an ice pack on his hand._ "James," the man looked over to her, "trust me when I say it is better just to wait. You'll end up with a very swollen hand if you keep it up."

"All right, all right, I'll leave her be."

Movement by the front door grabbed Shepard's attention making her turn to see Grunt entering the apartment. _I don't see any C-Sec officers behind him or omni-cuffs around his hands,_ she sighed in relief internally, _that's a weight off my shoulders._ "Probably best," she said before excusing herself to greet the tank-bred Krogan.

A few strides away she heard another yelp of pain. "Ow!"

"Did you really think I would buy that little trick? I have four _very_ crafty daughters, James, and they don't get anything by me."

"Can't I just get one little pinky sized taste?" he pleaded.

 _Her answer isn't going to change, James. I've been there before, but I learned my lesson after the first two attempts._ Shepard's smile remained firm on her face as Grunt met her eyes and grinned. "Shepard!" He closed the remaining distance between them and picked her up in a giant bear hug, squeezing her tightly and popping her back in a few places.

"Hey big guy," she choked the words out. "I'm glad to see you, but you're crushing me."

Grunt set her back down on her feet, his grin never leaving his face. "You'll be fine. A hug never killed anyone."

 _I don't know about that. I'm pretty sure you could turn a hug deadly if you squeezed hard enough._ She stretched out her back then clapped the Krogan on his shoulder. "Glad you could make it. The girls will be excited to see you."

"Uncle Grunt! You made it!" Xandria ran past Shepard and hugged the massive Krogan who in turn laughed and picked her up in a bear hug as well.

"Like I said," Ana said, chuckling lightly.

"Xandria!" The young child squealed and giggled as he tossed her up into the air and caught her. Shepard felt her heart race a little faster as she prepared to reach out with her biotic's on a moment's notice to catch her daughter. She had seen them do this a lot and had done it herself, but she always panicked a little when she saw someone else do it.

Her worry was needless, however. Despite how he handled her personally, Grunt showed a level of gentleness most did not expect out of a Krogan when he handled her daughter's. He adored them as much as they adored him and he would never do anything to intentionally harm them. They were his little nieces and he always did his best to make them happy.

He set the little girl down and ruffled her hat covered head. "Of course I made it. I couldn't miss seeing you, your sisters and everyone else."

Xandria giggled then stopped as realization came over her. "Oh! Wait here, Uncle Grunt. We have a hat like this one for you to wear, just bigger."

She took off before the Krogan could respond which left him staring at Ana in confusion for the reason as to why her daughter ran off. "They didn't want you or Wrex to feel left out with everyone else wearing Christmas hats, so we bought large ones for you two."

"Oh, right. I almost forgot about that." Grunt reached behind his back and pulled out his Claymore. He carried the weapon in one hand, holding it at the pump as he took on a serious look.

"Grunt, why do you have a shotgun?" Shepard asked, worry thick in her voice.

"I researched this Santa Claus, Shepard. Stories say he breaks into your home after watching kids while they sleep and when they're awake." His light blue eyes became deadly serious. "Well I've got news for him: he better watch out and he better start crying, because Uncle Grunt is in town and I'll smell him coming." Grunt pumped his shotgun with one hand. "Don't worry, Shepard. I'll keep them safe. He won't get anywhere near your daughters."

 _Oh dear…_ Shepard wasn't sure what was scarier, the fact that Grunt thought Santa Claus was a creepy pervert who he had to protect her daughters from, or that he turned a Christmas carol into a threat.

"Grunt…"

"Nooo!" Four little girls latched themselves onto the Krogan and began trying to reach for his weapon. Grunt, thinking quickly, raised it high above their heads. It did little to stop their attempts to jump up and grab it from him. "You can't hurt Santa Claus, Uncle Grunt," Xandria argued.

"But he's dangerous," Grunt tried to reason.

"No he isn't," Denia said.

"He's magical," Miyako followed.

"And wants to spread good cheer," Zenia finished.

Ana felt her heart beating hard and fast against her ribcage in fear as they continued to reach for the weapon. "Little ones, stop trying to grab his shotgun right now," she ordered firmly.

"Mommy," Xandria, who had a big red hat in her hand, and her three sisters turned around to face her with frantic faces, "you have to tell Uncle Grunt he can't hurt Santa Claus. He can't."

"I will, but you four need to understand that you should never do what you just did when someone has a gun in their hand. I understand that you four didn't want him to hurt Santa Claus, but that wasn't the way to do it. You could have gotten hurt yourselves or hurt Uncle Grunt."

"Sorry," the girls apologized.

"It's okay. Just promise me you won't ever do it again. You about gave me a heart attack." They gave a series of truthful promises that settled the redhead's beating heart. _Good. Now I just have to get Grunt to not want to kill Santa Claus._ "Grunt, I appreciate your desire to protect my little ones, I really do, but I think you've been given the wrong idea on who Santa Claus is and what he does."

"You're right that he does watch everyone and sneaks into their houses, but when he sneaks in he leaves behind gifts for everyone who was good this year. He doesn't want to get caught though because it's against the law to break into people's homes, even if he is doing it for a good reason."

"He leaves…gifts?"

"Yeah, and we leave him cookies as a way to thank him for all the gifts he brings," Zenia explained.

"Cookies?"

Now Grunt was becoming invested in the idea. While Anastasia definitely had a huge weak spot for sweets, the tank-bred Krogan had an even bigger one. There was an opportunity here to get him to put the gun away and Shepard wasn't going to let it pass. "We baked a lot of cookies and Kasumi is baking her special cakes. I'm sure if you promise to put the gun away and put the hat on that she'll let you taste the icing and have a whole plate to yourself."

"A whole plate just for me?" Grunt's eyes were practically glowing at the thought of having a whole plate of cookies all to himself.

"Yes."

She reached her hand out to take the shotgun and found the heavy weight placed in her hand in an instant. "In that case, where's the hat?" Xandria handed it over to him and he made quick work of putting it on. The hat was actually about one size too big, but Grunt didn't seem to care. He was going to get those cookies and make his little nieces happy no matter what. "So, how do I look?"

"I think you'd still have enemies quaking in their boots if they saw you like this. You mix jolly and menacing quite well," Ana said, smiling as she did.

"Heh heh heh." Grunt's grin and laugh added more points towards menacing, but that was fine. She loved her little tank-bred Krogan and her girls loved their crazy head-butting uncle. "Let's go get some cookies!" He pumped his fist into the air.

"Cookies!" the girls cheered with him, pumping their fists into the air as well.

Ana's smile turned into a grin at the scene. _They're cuteness is so infectious._ Her little one's plus Grunt marched off for the kitchen in search of cookies with the redhead watching them go. _It's a good thing I made a specific plate of cookies just for Grunt in case I had to bribe him. That might not have turned out as well if I hadn't._

"Nice to see Tiny embracing the holiday spirit," Zaeed's voice broke her out of her musings causing her to turn to the arriving man. He had a wide grin on his face and a laugh in his voice at the event he had caught the end of.

"Glad you could make it, Zaeed," Shepard greeted him with a smile and a handshake.

"Glad to be here, Shepard. Been a while since we've all come together, brings me back to the old days of facing down the impossible and destroying it with the biggest goddamn gun we could find."

The retired Commander chuckled and motioned him to come in. "Try not to frighten the kids with old war stories," she jested.

"They'll be fine. It builds character," he replied easily.

She smirked and let him go without comment. She headed up to her armory and stuck the Claymore in it then locked the room until she had to return the weapon to its owner. Kaiden showed up as Kasumi had been finishing her cake and James was taking over the kitchen with a few wrapped gifts and a tree-topper perfect for their tree.

It was similar to the monument placed at the original Normandy's crash site save for a few small details. For starters it wasn't made out of gold. It was made of a white material and lined with lights within it. The path left behind by the Normandy was smaller and colored with blue and red lights while the Normandy itself was actually flying to a large star that made up most of the tree-topper colored in shining white light.

Kaiden had let Miyako put the star on the top by placing her on his shoulders and then lifting her up higher when that didn't work thanks to a lack of height and reach. Time moved forward as it always did until everyone had eaten their fantastic dinner and filled their stomachs to capacity on the extraordinary cake a little while later.

It was getting close to her daughters bedtime when Ana found herself leaning forward on the railing of the balcony overlooking the main hall. All of her friends and children were spread out between the two rooms and seeing them all together made her heart grow four sizes larger than it was.

Her daughter's had managed to get Zaeed to wear a hat easily enough but were only now finally getting one on Javik's head, although to his credit he had allowed them to do so. Their cheers of joy only served to keep a joyful smile on her face.

"What are you doing all alone up here, my dear Commander?"

Ana turned her head to see her lover approaching. She took her place at her side and leaned forward on the railing as well. "Just taking in the moment, my beautiful thief."

"It is a pretty sight, isn't it? Everyone together, a festive spirit, and no burnt cookies in sight."

Shepard breathed out a laugh and nudged her thief's shoulder with her own. "I'm never living that down, am I?"

Lips pressed against her cheek. "Only around Christmas time." Kasumi's left hand glided down her right forearm and found her hand. They intertwined them out of natural instinct and turned their eyes back down to the scene before them. Her lover rested her head against her arm and let out a relaxed breath. "Merii kurisumasu, Ana."

"Merry Christmas, Kasumi. I love you."

"I love you more."

Having her lover here next to her, her four daughters in eye sight spreading their infectious happiness to others and seeing all of the people she considered family under one roof was truly the greatest gift of all.


End file.
